Which part are you referring to? I think word that the CEO plus family use iPhones was out there for much longer than the huawei ban, so they either were planning ahead or it's actually true.

As for the PR hack I wouldn't go as far as calling it a hack... It just sounds very Chinese from my perspective. They do go full trump sometimes but usually there's this harmony thing going on. Keep in mind that this is the translation of an interview given to Chinese media, it was primarily directed at Chinese citizens.