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Huawei has a new weapon in its battle to overcome U.S. sanctions.

The Chinese smartphone maker has announced the launch of its own rival to Google's Android operating system.

Dubbed HarmonyOS, the software will be available on certain handsets from Wednesday (June 2).

The goal is to have Harmony on 200 million smartphones by the end of the year.

Since 2019 Huawei has been on a Washington blacklist that bars access to critical technology of U.S. origin.

That means it can't put Android on new models of phone.

The ban has seen Huawei lose its title as world's biggest smartphone maker, with the firm dropping down to sixth place.

Now telecoms market watchers say success for Harmony will require other brands and even automakers to adopt the system.

But IDC analyst Will Wong says China provides exactly the right business environment for that to be a realistic possibility.