Chinese tech giant Xiaomi Corp said in a notice on the Hong Kong stock exchange on Sunday that its legal complaint against the Pentagon and the US Treasury Department was intended to protect the company's interests.
The company filed a complaint in a Washington district court on Friday against the two departments, seeking to remove the firm from an official list of companies with alleged ties to China's military sector.
Xiaomi addressed its complaint to Biden-appointed Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, calling the judgement “unlawful and unconstitutional”.
Xiaomi along with eight other Chinese companies was blacklisted by the White House earlier this month, prohibiting American investors from buying the company’s securities and prompting divestment from the electronics maker. The ban made Xiaomi’s shares drop nearly 11% on Hong Kong’s Stock Exchange.
The nine companies will now be joining the ranks of Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (SMIC) and Huawei, blacklisted by the Pentagon in 2020. The latter has been targeted by a US government crackdown for quite some time, with the White House claiming back in 2019 that the company was collaborating with the Chinese government to allow it to spy on those who use the tech company's equipment. Those allegations have been rejected by both Beijing and Huawei.