A federal judge in San Jose, California, has issued an order blocking the Trump administration from enforcing a ban that prevented the Pentagon from working with companies lobbying for Alibaba. The ruling follows a lawsuit filed by the tech giant against the US Department of Defense.
The contested regulation forced lobbying firms to choose between representing Chinese tech companies like Alibaba and Tencent or maintaining contracts with the US Department of Defense. This resulted in several influential Washington firms severing ties with the Chinese corporations.
Alibaba continues its legal challenge to be removed from the Pentagon's list of Chinese military companies. The company maintains it is not a military enterprise and is not involved in any civil-military fusion strategies, arguing that the initial designation lacked factual basis.
In its court filing, Alibaba stated that the Department of Defense failed to provide sufficient evidence or a reasonable explanation for the listing. The company noted that it had attempted to communicate and submit documentation to the department, but received no response.
The Pentagon originally updated its list of Chinese military companies on June 8, including Alibaba, Baidu, and BYD. While the court has halted the lobbying-related restrictions, a final ruling on the company's status on the military list is still pending.
