Alibaba’s presence in Belgium is a point of state security attention. The Chinese e-commerce giant may be accused of espionage practices.

Because of “suspicion of espionage practices,” state security is paying particular attention to Alibaba, the Chinese counterpart to Amazon. This is what the American newspaper Financial Times writes. The state security agency is currently providing little further information about the (possible) investigation.

Alibaba opened a large e-commerce hub in the Liège area in 2018, near the cargo airport. The store is an important distribution center for European consumers purchasing products on the e-commerce platform. The Chinese company was recruited with great fanfare, also because Amazon ignored our country at the time. The excitement over Alibaba’s presence in Belgium appears to have waned.

Not the first time

Alibaba is not the first and perhaps not the last Chinese company to be suspected of espionage. The suspicion arises primarily from Chinese legislation, which can require companies to pass on information to the government. For the same reasons, Huawei has also been pushed into the background by many European countries.

However, finding evidence to support such claims has proven difficult. Alibaba, of course, denies any wrongdoing.