White House says Alibaba is helping Chinese military target US, FT reports

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Washington has accused online marketplace company Alibaba of providing technological support for Chinese military operations against targets in the United States, the Financial Times said on Friday, citing a White House memo. The national security memo includes declassified top-secret intelligence on how the Chinese group supplies the People's Liberation Army with capabilities that the White House believes threaten U.S. security, the FT reported. The report did not specify which capabilities or operations were involved, or whether the U.S. was seeking to respond in any way. Alibaba shares traded in the U.S. were down 4.2% after the news. "The assertions and innuendos in the article are completely false," Alibaba said in a statement. "We question the motivation behind the anonymous leak, which the FT admits that they cannot verify. This malicious PR operation clearly came from a rogue voice looking to undermine President Trump’s recent trade deal with China." The Chinese embassy in Washington denied the report, and said China opposes and cracks down on all forms of cyberattacks in accordance with law. "Without valid evidence, the US jumped to an unwarranted conclusion and made groundless accusations against China. It is extremely irresponsible and is a complete distortion of facts. China firmly opposes this," embassy spokesperson Liu Pengyu said in a statement. The White House declined to comment. (Reporting by Jasper Ward in Washington; Editing by Susan Heavey and Matthew Lewis)

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