Chinese Diplomat Jokes That Huawei ‘Has Cut Apple Into Pieces’

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China has reacted with uncharacteristic fury to what it deems a concerted U.S. attack on its national champions -- and even its way of life. But one diplomat showed a touch of humor as he jumped to Huawei Technologies Co.’s defense.

Zhao Lijian, deputy chief of mission at the Chinese embassy in Islamabad, tweeted a picture Tuesday of a carved-up apple. “It has been just revealed why @realDonaldTrump hated a private company from China so much,” he joked. “Look at the logo of Huawei. It has cut APPLE into pieces...”

The escalating U.S.-Chinese tensions over trade and Huawei threaten to pummel a swathe of technology companies from America to Asia, dampen global growth and hamstring the country’s largest technology company. But it’s not the first time he has poked fun at topics and issues with serious ramifications.

Zhao’s Twitter feed -- followed by more than 170,000 and that in turn tracks over 186,000 accounts -- is replete with examples of the diplomat’s quirky humor. The official, who’s cited regularly in Pakistani news stories, has turned his lens on everything from criticism against human rights violations in Xinjiang to the dominance of Google.

Emails sent to the Pakistani embassy’s address listed on its website were undeliverable. Zhao didn’t immediately respond to comments posted to his Twitter feed.

To contact the reporter on this story: Edwin Chan in Hong Kong at echan273@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Robert Fenner at rfenner@bloomberg.net, Peter Elstrom, Lulu Yilun Chen

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