4 years ago
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Friday the United States was imposing visa restrictions on Chinese Communist Party officials believed responsible for restricting freedoms in Hong Kong.
“Today, I am announcing visa restrictions on current and former CCP officials who are believed to be responsible for, or complicit in, undermining Hong Kong’s high degree of autonomy,” Pompeo said in a statement, which did not name those targeted.
The announcement comes in response to moves by China to impose new security legislation on Hong Kong, which prompted U.S. President Donald Trump last month to initiate a process to eliminate special economic treatment that has allowed the territory to remain a global financial center.
It also comes at a time of intensified U.S. rhetoric against China in the midst of Trump’s re-election campaign, in which opinion polls have shown voters increasingly embittered toward Beijing, especially over the coronavirus, which began in that country.
