Visitors test smartphones at the ZTE stand during the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. [Photo/Agencies]

SHENZHEN, March 22 -- Chinese telecom equipment maker ZTE Corp.said it will continue to work with the U.S. government to be fully removed from the Entity List after a temporary trade sanction relief was provided to the company on Tuesday.

On March 8, the United States announced export restrictions on ZTE and three affiliated entities for alleged violation of U.S. export controls on Iran.

The U.S. Commerce Department has added ZTE Corp., ZTE Kangxun, Beijing 8-Star, and ZTE Parsian to the Entity List under the Export Administration Regulations, accusing them of re-exporting controlled items to Iran.

The move was strongly opposed by China's Ministry of Commerce and Ministry of Foreign Affairs with Foreign Minister Wang Yi, who called it an approach which will only hurt others without necessarily benefiting oneself.

The company will continue to invest heavily in its core technology and manage the company according to regulations to ensure healthy development, a spokesperson from the Shenzhen-headquartered company told Xinhua in an interview

So far ZTE has 14 offices and 6 research centers in the United States, with 80 percent of its 350 staff being Americans. ZTE currently holds about 7 percent of the U.S. smartphone market, making it the fourth largest manufacturer in the country, after Apple, Samsung and LG. It is also a sponsor of five NBA teams.