Dhaka, Jan. 17 -- Huawei would never allow Chinese government to access customer data, even if Beijing requested it, the CEO and founder of the company said Tuesday.

In a rare sit down with international media, Ren Zhengfei addressed concerns raised by the US, which has warned that the company's equipment could allow the Chinese government to have a backdoor into a nation's telecommunications network.

Ren said he would "definitely" refuse any request from the Chinese government to access the company's user data. He said his longtime affiliation with China's ruling party would not affect his ability to fight against that same government if it requested user data.

"When it comes to cybersecurity and privacy protection we are committed to...