TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba is suing the United States government after the Department of Defense added it to a list of companies suspected of ties to the Chinese military.
Tech publication Engadget on Wednesday, June 24, cited reports from Bloomberg and the BBC stating that Alibaba filed a lawsuit seeking removal from the Pentagon's blacklist.
Alibaba believes the company's inclusion on the Department of Defense's 1260H list lacks any legal or factual basis and violates its rights to free speech and due process.
The Department of Defense has cited Alibaba as a contributor to civil-military integration that supports China's defense industry due to its regulatory ties with the Chinese government.
Earlier this month, the Department of Defense released an update to the 1260H list, which includes Chinese internet services company Baidu.
Companies added to the list are not automatically subject to sanctions, but the Department of Defense will no longer be able to engage in business relationships or use products and services from companies listed, even through third parties.
Additionally, other companies may avoid working with companies on the list for fear of facing trade restrictions or other consequences from the United States government.
Alibaba stated that the company's inclusion on the 1260H list also hindered its efforts to hire a law firm to help it challenge the designation.
Alibaba has apparently been attempting to engage with the United States government since last February, when the Pentagon published and then withdrew a list that included the company.
According to a Bloomberg report, Alibaba has submitted evidence showing that the company does not support Chinese military activities, but the United States Department of Defense has yet to respond.
Alibaba denies that any members of its board of directors have military affiliations and asserts that its platform was developed for e-commerce and cloud computing, not for military or intelligence operations.
"Alibaba is not a Chinese military company nor part of any military-civil fusion strategy," the company told the BBC.
The company called the Pentagon's decision to add Alibaba to the 1260H list "arbitrary and capricious" and filed a lawsuit to have its name removed from the list.
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