The U.S. Consulate General in Hong Kong issued a statement on Tuesday (October 6, 2020) objecting to restrictions imposed by the Chinese government on official meetings between the Consulate General and local officials in Hong Kong. This is the first public reaction by the U.S. Consulate General in Hong Kong since early September, when Beijing announced restrictions on the movement of U.S. Embassy and Consulate personnel in China.
According to the statement, for years mainland Chinese authorities have impeded the activities of U.S. diplomats on the mainland, and U.S. diplomats wishing to host cultural exchanges, meet with officials and other counterparts, and visit university campuses have often been prevented from doing so by Chinese authorities. As a result of this unfair and discriminatory approach by the Chinese Communist Party, the U.S. State Department has been forced to impose new restrictions on the activities of Chinese diplomats in the United States. But staff of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in the United States can continue to meet with anyone without prior approval.
The statement said that the recent retaliatory measures by the Chinese Foreign Ministry against U.S. diplomats, including the inclusion of the U.S. Consulate in Hong Kong, and China’s believed instructions to Hong Kong government officials not to meet with U.S. diplomats, show China’s disregard for its commitments to the people of Hong Kong and to individual freedoms and diplomatic protocols, as well as Beijing’s failure to live up to its commitment to one country, two systems.
The statement from the U.S. Consulate General in Hong Kong concluded that, according to a note received by the U.S. Embassy in Beijing from the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ relevant regulations apply only to the U.S. Consul General in Hong Kong and do not affect other Consulate diplomatic personnel.
In a statement on September 3, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo cited various restrictions imposed by China on the activities of U.S. diplomats, so the U.S. will impose the same restrictions on the activities of Chinese diplomats in the United States.
A few days later, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian announced “reciprocal” restrictions on U.S. diplomats and all staff at U.S. embassies and consulates in China, including the U.S. Consulate General in Hong Kong.
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