In a rather pointed letter, Henry Waxman and 34 other members of Congress tell US Trade Rep Sue Schwab that her office has “penalized” Thailand by placing the Asian nation on its Priority Watch list.

This is a dubious distinction reserved for countries that don’t “provide an adequate level of intellectual property rights protection or enforcement.” The move came after Thailand issued compulsory licenses for three drugs, including Abbott Lab’s Kaletra, to which the drugmaker responded by refusing to sell a new heat-sensitive version to the country.

“It is difficult to interpret this decision as anything other than retaliation for Thailand’s recent actions. It sends a troubling message not only to Thailand, but the whole world, that the exercise of recognized public health flexibilities in trade obligations is frowned upon by the United States…The move is being viewed as a warning and threat to other countries that might consider similar action,” they write.

They conclude, of course, by asking Schwab to remove Thailand from the Priority Watch list. Whether Schwab heeds their call remains to be seen, but this is the largest such group of Congressional reps to go on record in support of Thailand since the controversy broke out several months ago. And their letter, which cites Schwab’s willingness to act on complaints from Abbott and others, suggests the row could get still more interesting.