China Objects to US Adding BYD, Alibaba, Baidu to Military Firm List
Quick Look
China strongly opposes the US placing prominent Chinese companies like BYD, Alibaba, and Baidu on a military firm list, stating it disregards agreements from the Trump-Xi summit and constitutes an unjustifiable suppression of Chinese enterprises.
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Why It Matters
The US Pentagon added several Chinese companies, including BYD, Alibaba, and Baidu, to its list of military firms. China views this as a violation of agreements made during a recent summit between Presidents Trump and Xi.
Beijing: China said Saturday it firmly opposed the U.S. adding several prominent Chinese businesses to its list of military companies, and that the move ignored the consensus reached during U.S. President Donald Trump's summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping last month.
The Pentagon on Monday added several non-state-owned Chinese companies, including electric vehicle maker BYD, tech giants Alibaba and Baidu to its list that seeks to identify Chinese companies it deems to have ties to the Chinese military, preventing them from landing U.S. defense contracts.
By adding these firms to the list, "the U.S. side has ignored the consensus reached during the meeting between the heads of state of the two countries in Beijing," a Chinese Ministry of Commerce spokesperson said Saturday in a statement.
The U.S. has "disregarded the overall interests of bilateral economic and trade relations, continuously generalized the concept of national security, and abused state power to unjustifiably suppress Chinese enterprises," the spokesperson added.
BYD, Alibaba and Baidu said earlier there's no basis to include them in the list.
Trump in mid-May visited Beijing in a much-anticipated summit with Xi. The two leaders agreed to boost economic ties between the countries, including China's purchase of more U.S. agricultural products and Boeing jets, and the setting up separate boards of trade and investment.
Open Questions
- Will China retaliate with similar measures?
- What are the specific military ties the US alleges?
- Will other countries follow the US lead?
