Ren Zhengfei, the founder of Chinese telecom equipment giant Huawei Technologies Co., broke silence to dismiss spying accusations that have dogged the company amid its overseas expansion.

Ren made a rare public comment Tuesday saying his company has never spied for the Chinese government and never would, The Wall Street Journal reported.

“No law requires any company in China to install mandatory back doors,” Ren told the Journal. “I personally would never harm the interest of my customers and me, and my company would not answer to such requests.”

Huawei has been in a hot seat as its global initiative to roll out the next-generation 5G wireless telecom technology has raised national security concerns among foreign governments. Several countries, including Australia and New Zealand, have banned Huawei from their 5G network upgrades.

Ren’s daughter Meng Wanzhou, who is Huawei’s chief financial officer, was detained in Canada last month at the request of U.S. authorities on allegations Huawei violated U.S. sanctions on Iran. Meng was released on bail and is waiting in Vancouver for further extradition procedures.

Ren, a 74-year-old former army engineer, told media Tuesday that he missed his daughter but was optimistic justice would prevail.

Related：In-Depth: Huawei’s Odyssey Heads Into Uncharted Waters