Chinese technology giant Alibaba has filed a federal lawsuit against the US Department of Defence, challenging its inclusion on a Pentagon list of companies alleged to have links to the Chinese military.
The lawsuit, filed on Tuesday in a federal court in San Jose, California, contests the Pentagon's decision to add Alibaba to a blacklist released earlier this month. The list names 80 companies and subsidiaries that the US defence department says are connected to or support China's military.
In its complaint, Alibaba argued that the designation is unsupported by evidence and lacks a legal basis.
"The determinations have no basis in fact or law," the lawsuit states.
A company spokesperson told AFP on Wednesday that Alibaba has no ties to the Chinese military and is not involved in any military-civil fusion programme.
"Alibaba is not a Chinese military company nor part of any military-civil fusion strategy," the spokesperson said.
The company described the Pentagon's decision as unjustified and said it was seeking its removal through legal action.
"The decision to place Alibaba on the... list is arbitrary and capricious, and we are filing a lawsuit against the Department of War to demand removal from the list," the spokesperson added.
The latest Pentagon list also includes Chinese search engine company Baidu and electric vehicle manufacturer BYD.
Under the designation, the Pentagon will be barred from entering into new contracts with listed companies and their controlled subsidiaries from 30 June. The classification also limits the ability of designated firms to hire lobbying organisations in the United States.
Alibaba argues that those restrictions violate rights protected under the First Amendment of the US Constitution. According to the complaint, the consequences are already affecting the company.
"The effect is already being felt: advocates who have represented Alibaba for years have informed the company that they can no longer do so," the lawsuit says.
The company also noted that it is a publicly traded e-commerce and cloud computing provider whose shareholder base includes major American financial institutions such as JPMorgan, Citigroup and BlackRock.
The legal challenge comes amid renewed tensions between Washington and Beijing. On Monday, China responded to the Pentagon blacklist by imposing export controls on 10 US companies involved in the defence and rare earths mining sectors.
The dispute is the latest test of relations between the world's two largest economies, despite efforts to stabilise ties following a meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing last month.
