CXMT Challenges Pentagon’s ‘Chinese Military Company’ Label in Court

POLICY WIRE — Washington, USA — ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT), China’s leading memory chip manufacturer, has initiated legal action against the Pentagon. The lawsuit challenges the Pentagon’s classification of CXMT as a ‘Chinese military company.’ This designation, initially made under the Biden administration and later upheld by the Trump administration, has significant implications for the company.

The Pentagon has yet to comment on the lawsuit. CXMT insists it has no ties to the Chinese military and that its dynamic random-access memory (DRAM) chips are designed, produced, and sold exclusively for civilian and commercial purposes.

CXMT is seeking to overturn the designation, which it argues is arbitrary, lacks evidentiary support, and violates its due-process rights. The company spent over a year providing information to the Pentagon to challenge the classification and seeks removal from the Pentagon’s list, which can lead to government contracting restrictions and reputational harm.

The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, names the U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Deputy Defense Secretary Steve Feinberg, and Assistant Secretary of Defense for Industrial Base Policy Michael Cadenazzi as defendants. CXMT contends that the Pentagon’s decision was not supported by the factual record, applicable law, or reasoned decision-making.

This legal action mirrors similar lawsuits filed by other Chinese companies, such as Alibaba, which sued the U.S. government over its placement on a list of businesses linked to China’s military.

Reporting by Policy-Wire (PW)