Chinese tech company Huawei Technologies Co has described a controversial European Union legislative draft on network security as violating both the EU's basic legal principles and its international obligations.

In a statement that emphasized the importance of fair and rules-based policy-making, a spokesperson for Huawei that "a legislative proposal to limit or exclude non-EU suppliers based on country of origin, rather than factual evidence and technical standards, violates the EU's basic legal principles of fairness, non-discrimination, and proportionality, as well as its World Trade Organization obligations."

The comments came after a draft proposal released by Brussels in January revealed that the EU plans to phase out components and equipment from supposedly high-risk suppliers in critical sectors.

"We will closely monitor the subsequent development of the legislative process and reserve all rights to safeguard our legitimate interests," the Huawei statement added.