The House Committee on the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has requested that the Departments of Treasury, Defense (DOD), and Commerce investigate two Chinese bio-tech companies with ties to the CCP. The call was made in a letter co-authored by U.S. Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.), chairman of the committee, Ranking Member U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.), and U.S. Sens. Gary Peters (D-Mich.) and Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.).
"WuXi AppTec and WuXi Biologics are rapidly becoming a global pharmaceutical and research-services giant that threatens U.S. intellectual property and national security," said the congressmen in the letter, according to the Select Committee on the CCP. "Both companies have close ties to the CCP and have worked at its behest, in multiple instances."
The Select Committee on the CCP, chaired by Gallagher, was formed to counteract the influence of the CCP. According to its mission statement, this bipartisan committee is committed to "working on a bipartisan basis to build consensus on the threat posed by the Chinese Communist Party and develop a plan of action to defend the American people, our economy, and our values". The committee comprises various U.S. Representatives including Michelle Steel (R-Calif.), Andy Barr (R-Ky.), Shontel Brown (D-Ohio), Jake Auchincloss (Mass.), among others.
In a press release dated Feb. 12, it was revealed that in their letter to the U.S. departments, lawmakers proposed potential inclusion of WuXi AppTec and its subsidiaries on several government lists such as DOD's Chinese Military Companies List (1260H list), Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security Entity List, and Department of Treasury’s Non-SDN Chinese Military-Industrial Complex Companies List.
The committee members provided evidence supporting their claims. The press release stated that WuXi AppTec's Chairman had encouraged CCP members to assume roles within his company while WuXi Biologics' CEO attributed his company's success to support from the CCP. Furthermore, WuXi AppTec operates China's "State Key Laboratory of Drug Lead Compound Research" and has links with both the Chinese military and the CCP, as demonstrated by its management committee composed of military personnel and CCP officials. In collaboration with the People's Liberation Army (PLA), WuXi AppTec manages genetic testing facilities that facilitate the CCP's systematic segregation of Uyghur Muslims.
Gallagher and Krishnamoorthi also referenced a bill introduced in January, known as the BIOSECURE Act. This legislation aims to prevent foreign adversary biotech companies, especially those posing threats to U.S. national security, from accessing U.S. taxpayer funds. The bill is co-sponsored in the House by U.S. Reps. Neal Dunn (R-Fla.), Seth Moulton (D-Mass.), and Auchincloss, and in the Senate by Sens. Hagerty, Peters, Mitt Romney (R-Utah), and Roger Marshall (R-Kan.). It seeks to prohibit federally funded medical providers from engaging with concerning foreign biotech firms like BGI Group, MGI, Complete Genomics, and WuXi AppTec, a company affiliated with the PLA.
