Alibaba challenged the Pentagon blacklist designation in a US federal lawsuit filed Tuesday in San Jose, saying the military-linked label had no basis in fact or law.
The Chinese tech company told AFP on Wednesday that the decision was “arbitrary and capricious.” Alibaba said it was not a Chinese military company. It also denied being part of any military-civil fusion strategy.
The Pentagon released a new list this month naming 80 companies and subsidiaries it said were aiding the Chinese military. The list also included Chinese search giant Baidu and electric vehicle maker BYD.
Under the designation, the Pentagon cannot enter into new contracts with listed companies or their controlled subsidiaries after June 30.
Alibaba said the listing also restricts its ability to retain lobbying firms in the United States. The company argued in its complaint that the restriction violated First Amendment rights.
The lawsuit said some advocates who had represented Alibaba for years had already told the company they could no longer do so.
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Alibaba described itself in the complaint as a publicly traded e-commerce and cloud-services provider. It said its shareholder base included major US financial institutions such as JPMorgan, Citigroup and BlackRock.
China imposed export controls on Monday on 10 US companies involved in defence and rare earths mining.
