Biotech firm WuXi sues US over allegations it supports China’s military

A Chinese biotechnology company sued the US government on Thursday over being placed on a list of businesses from China that the ‌US Department of Defence has linked to that country’s military.

WuXi AppTec filed its complaint in the Washington federal court, calling its inclusion on the list arbitrary, capricious, unsupported by the facts and “the product of political pressure”.

It also accused the US government of inflicting substantial reputational and operational harm by branding it a national security threat without any legal or factual basis.

The lawsuit seeks WuXi’s removal from the list. A Pentagon spokesman said the agency does not ⁠discuss pending litigation.

WuXi’s lawsuit came three days after the Pentagon expanded its blacklist to 188 companies, reflecting concern that ‌China’s military could tap that country’s private sector for advancements, amid elevated geopolitical tensions between Beijing and Washington.

It also came less than one month after US President Donald Trump met China’s Xi Jinping ‌in Beijing, with the two leaders maintaining a delicate truce on trade issues.