The U.S. State Department confirmed Wednesday (March 10) that top Chinese and U.S. diplomats will meet in Alaska on March 18, with Secretary of State Antony Blinken and National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan on the U.S. side and Yang Jiechi, director of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, and Foreign Minister Wang Yi on the Chinese side.
The U.S. media revealed that the five topics discussed included the Hong Kong issue.
U.S.-China conflict intensifies over Hong Kong’s restructuring
The Financial Times analyzed on March 11 that the Chinese Communist Party‘s decision to reform Hong Kong’s electoral system, adopted ahead of a high-level U.S.-China meeting, has sharpened the differences between the two countries over the democracy movement in Hong Kong.
On Wednesday (March 10), U.S. Secretary of State John Blinken told a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing that the United States will continue to take action against those who commit serious violations of democracy and human rights in Hong Kong.
He said the Biden administration will “continue to enforce sanctions” against “those who have engaged in repression in Hong Kong. Blinken also reminded U.S. companies of the sanctions already imposed on Hong Kong and that “if they are operating in Hong Kong, they need to be aware of those.”
The “Hong Kong version of the National Security Law” forced by the Chinese Communist Party last year paved the way for a widespread crackdown on democracy in Hong Kong. Now the Communist Party’s reform of Hong Kong’s electoral system will give the pro-Beijing “Election Committee” the power to review and appoint Hong Kong lawmakers.
The Financial Times reported that Yang Yirui, acting commissioner of the Chinese Communist Party in Hong Kong, summoned foreign diplomats in Hong Kong on Tuesday and warned them not to retaliate against the changes to Hong Kong’s electoral system.
Yang said, “A very small number of countries, driven by political motives and ideological bias, have made irresponsible statements and even threatened to interfere with the (Communist Party of China) Central Committee’s decision to improve the electoral system.” “Their attempts are doomed to be futile.”
Experts urge Biden to take real action to support democracy in Hong Kong
In addition to next week’s high-level meeting between the U.S. and China, the Biden Administration will also participate in a “quadripartite meeting” on Friday, in which the United States, Japan, India and Australia will meet to discuss how to confront the Chinese Communist Party, one of the main issues.
Rep. Andy Kim, D-N.J., said Biden needs to unite U.S. allies to impose sanctions on the Chinese Communist Party, “This week, we should try to unite other countries, this is the Time to prove we can’t back down.”
Ryan Hass, an author and expert on mainland China, said the U.S. should recognize that there is “no silver bullet” against the Chinese Communist Party and that it must fight a “protracted war. In his analysis, the CCP’s gamble is that the United States and other Western countries will accept a “fait accompli” and be forced to acknowledge Beijing’s crackdown on Hong Kong. He also said the U.S. could follow the U.K. and Canada in the short term in providing a way for Hong Kong citizens who wish to flee the Communist Party to do so.
Sophie Richardson, China director for Human Rights Watch, urged Biden, whose administration has stated that it wants to get tough on the Communist Party, to match his words with his actions and truly promote democracy in Hong Kong. “The Biden administration says they stand with the people of Hong Kong,” Richardson said. “That’s an important statement, but it needs to be translated into real policy.”
Last year, former President Donald Trump (R) ordered the removal of U.S. special trade status for Hong Kong and would impose sanctions on the Chinese Communist Party and Hong Kong officials. He said Beijing has “suffocated Hong Kong’s freedom, completely suffocated it,” which is “a tragedy for the people of Hong Kong, mainland China and the world.”
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