SHANGHAI (AP) — A respected anti-counterfeiting coalition in Washington that once called for Alibaba's websites to be blacklisted later reversed its position. The International Anti-Counterfeiting Coalition welcomed Alibaba as a member and invited its founder to be the keynote speaker at its spring conference in Florida.

An Associated Press analysis of public filings shows that the coalition's public comments shifted from criticism to praise as the personal and financial ties between Alibaba and the group deepened, even as other industry associations — and the U.S. and Chinese governments — continued to take a harder line.

Alibaba has since been kicked out of the coalition, which is undergoing a governance audit. A probe by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission into Alibaba's accounting practices and sales data has raised further questions about the company.