Chinese semiconductor company AMEC sues U.S. Department of Defense for including it on CMC list

Chinese semiconductor company Advanced Micro-Fabrication Equipment Inc. China (AMEC) announced on Friday that it has formally filed a lawsuit with a U.S. court, suing the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) for its decision to include the company on the list of so-called "Chinese military companies" (CMC). AMEC asked the court to order the DOD to revoke its "erroneous decision" and remove the Chinese firm from the CMC list.

"Since being included on the CMC list, AMEC has made every effort to communicate with the DOD and clarify the facts. We provided ample evidence proving that AMEC does not meet the criteria for the CMC list, and has also requested removal from the CMC list," AMEC said.

The company noted that regrettably, its request had not been met as of the date of this lawsuit, and it had to resort to legal actions to "protect the company's legal rights, safeguard the interests of its shareholders, customers, and partners, and eliminate misunderstandings."

AMEC also stressed that it has always adhered to legal and compliant operations, strictly abided by domestic and international laws and regulations, and has never been involved in any military-related activities.

In January, the DOD added AMEC to the CMC list which the department claimed was "in accordance with Section 1260H of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021."

The Chinese chipmaker said at that time that the decision was "completely irrational, which is contrary to objective facts and lacks evidence." It also noted the CMC list has no specific sanctions, and will have no material impact on its operation.

In recent days, the U.S. Department of Defense has decided to remove Chinese tech firm Hesai Technology from its blacklist of Chinese military-affiliated companies after judging that the laser sensor maker did not meet the legal criteria for inclusion, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday, citing sources familiar with the move.

The Pentagon added Hesai to a blacklist in January. In May, Hesai filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Defense for including it on the blacklist, saying that the move had caused it to suffer reputational injury, which led to a significant drop in stock prices and business losses.