The United States has placed Alibaba and the world’s biggest electric car maker, BYD, on a Pentagon list of companies said to have ties with the Chinese military – a move that threatens to deepen tensions between Washington and Beijing.
The list, known as Section 1260H, was published on the Federal Register on Monday and names 188 “Chinese military companies” that the Pentagon deems a national security risk. The inclusion does not trigger immediate sanctions but is designed to alert American organisations to the risks of doing business with those firms.
“US adds BYD, Alibaba to list of firms with alleged Chinese military ties, risking tensions.”
Among those flagged are Alibaba, BYD, and Baidu, each accused of serving as a “military-civil contributor” to Chinese defence operations. According to Stefanie Kam, a policy analyst at Nanyang Technological University, Beijing is likely to view the move as a “form of economic containment”. Kam said the US appeared to have flagged the companies because of their participation in state programmes rather than based on clear evidence of contracts with the Chinese military.
The Chinese embassy in Washington called the list “discriminatory” and insisted that Chinese firms have strictly complied with laws abroad. Alibaba’s representatives said “there is no basis for their companies to have been listed”. In a statement, an Alibaba spokesperson said the firm is “not a Chinese military company nor part of any military-civil fusion strategy” and promised to “take all available legal action against attempts to misrepresent our company.”
Baidu, China’s search engine giant, said “there is no credible justification” for its inclusion and that it would “use all options available” to have its name struck off.
The Pentagon flagged many companies that directly or indirectly provide commercial services for the US and compete with major American firms in industries such as electric vehicles and artificial intelligence. BYD, which does not export its cars to the US, surpassed Tesla earlier this year to become the world’s top EV maker.
Other Chinese firms added to the list include electric car maker Nio and aircraft manufacturer Comac. Companies previously listed – such as Tencent, Huawei, drone producer DJI and battery maker CATL – remain on it. In 2019, Washington barred US firms from doing business with Huawei over national security concerns linked to its equipment.
Kam warned that China could retaliate with tit-for-tat sanctions, add American firms to a list of its own, or respond with some form of diplomatic pushback. The BBC has contacted BYD and several other listed firms for comment.