China blasts ‘suppression’ after US adds Tencent, CATL to military companies list

China on Tuesday accused Washington of “unjustified suppression” after the US Defense Department added tech giant Tencent and battery manufacturer CATL to a list of companies it says are affiliated with Beijing’s military.

“China is always firmly opposed to the US side’s generalisation of the concept of national security, the establishment of various discriminatory lists, the unreasonable suppression of Chinese enterprises and the curbing of China’s high-quality development,” foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun told a regular press briefing.

The US Defense Department’s list does not have direct legal implications for the companies in question, but can affect their reputations, and listed firms have sued over their inclusion in the past.

“We urge the US side to immediately correct its wrong practices,” Guo said, adding that China would “take the necessary measures to resolutely protect the rights of Chinese companies”.

Tencent is one of the top players in China’s expansive technology sector, operating the WeChat “super-app” with other offerings across gaming, content streaming and cloud services.

CATL is also a major firm, producing more than a third of the electric vehicle batteries sold in the world.

A spokesperson for Tencent said the company’s inclusion on the list “is clearly a mistake”, and that “we are not a military company or supplier”.

CATL also called it a “mistake” and asserted the firm is “not engaged in any military related activities”.

Tencent’s shares plummeted more than seven percent in Hong Kong on Tuesday, while CATL saw its shares in Shenzhen sink 5.2 percent.