Tencent and CATL are Chinese military companies, Washington says

The US Department of Defense (DOD) had designated the messaging and video game mammoth Tencent and battery maker CATL as Chinese military companies. Tencent reportedly called the move “a mistake.”

Tencent, among other Chinese companies, was added to the Section 1260H list, an annually updated document with organizations that Washington believes work with the Chinese military.

While the list doesn’t ban named companies from doing business in the US, it serves as a warning to American companies about the potential risks of working with listed entities.

According to the DOD, the list is a part of Washington’s effort to “highlight and counter” China’s “Military-Civil Fusion” strategy. The latter, US claims, supports the goals of People’s Liberation Army (PLA) via “advanced technologies and expertise developed by PRC companies, universities, and research programs that appear to be civilian entities.”

For example, Tencent owns WeChat, a messaging, mobile payments, and social media application, described as an “app for everything” in China. Several countries have already taken steps to limit access to the platform. Last year, Canadian authorities banned government officials from using the service, quoting the need “to ensure that Government of Canada networks and data remain secure.”

A Tencent spokesperson told the BBC that the company’s inclusion in the Section 1260H list was “clearly a mistake.” Another Chinese business newly added to the list, CATL, has also denied involvement in any military activities.

CATL, the largest electric vehicle (EV) battery maker in the world supplies many major car makers, including Toyota, BMW and Tesla, which is owned by Elon Musk, a close confidant of the President-elect Donald Trump.