Pentagon’s Latest China Blacklist Reflects Growing Doubts About Private Firms’ Independence

The Department of War’s expanded list underscores concerns that Chinese firms may be required to support state objectives.

BYD electric cars for export waiting to be loaded on the "BYD Explorer NO.1," a domestically manufactured vessel intended to export Chinese automobiles, at Yantai port, in Shandong Province, China, on Jan. 10, 2024. STR/AFP via Getty Images

The Pentagon’s recent decision to add several of China’s best-known tech and manufacturing companies to a list of firms linked to the Chinese military is drawing renewed attention to a question at the center of U.S.–China tensions—how independent are Chinese private companies from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)?

In an updated list released on June 8, the Department of War added a number of major Chinese firms to its Section 1260H list of entities identified as having ties to China’s military-industrial complex.