Alibaba Group has filed a lawsuit against the US government seeking to overturn its inclusion on a Pentagon list of companies allegedly linked to China’s military.
The Chinese technology and e-commerce giant lodged the complaint in a federal court in San Jose, California, after the US Department of Defense earlier this month expanded its list of so-called Chinese military companies to 188 entities.
The Pentagon classified Alibaba as a “military-civil fusion contributor to the Chinese defense industrial base” through an alleged affiliation with China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. It also cited indirect links to China’s state asset regulator, known as SASAC.
Alibaba rejected the allegations, arguing that the designation was unsupported by facts or law.
“The determinations have no basis in fact or law,” the company said in its court filing.
“Alibaba is governed by an independent board, none of whom has any military affiliation. Its products and services are built for retail, logistics, and enterprise information technology — not weapons, defense, or intelligence.”
The company is seeking removal from the blacklist, which was created amid growing US concerns that China’s military could leverage private-sector technology and innovation for defence purposes.
While inclusion on the list does not amount to formal sanctions, US law now prohibits the Pentagon from contracting directly with blacklisted companies and will bar procurement of their products and services through third parties from 2027.
Alibaba said the designation had already caused irreparable harm to its reputation and business relationships in the United States.
The latest blacklist expansion also included Chinese search giant Baidu, electric vehicle makers BYD and NIO, as well as biotechnology company WuXi AppTec, which filed a similar lawsuit against the US government earlier this month.
Reuters
