ILLUSTRATION. Monday (29/6), China announced it would impose visa restrictions on US individuals with “bad behavior” on issues related to Hong Kong.
Source: Reuters | Editor: Khomarul Hidayat
KONTAN.CO.ID – BEIJING. China and the United States (US) reciprocate visa visa restrictions. Monday (29/6), China announced it would impose visa restrictions on US individuals with “bad behavior” on issues related to Hong Kong.
The announcement came as China’s main parliamentary decision-making body discussed a draft national security law for Hong Kong criticized by Hong Kong pro-democracy activists to be used to dispel dissent and tighten Chinese control over Hong Kong.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian, who announced the new sanctions at a press conference in response to questions about new US visa restrictions.
He did not specify who the targeted US individual was.
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“The US is trying to obstruct Chinese law to protect national security in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region by imposing so-called sanctions, but that will never work,” he was quoted as saying. Reuters.
“In response, China has decided to impose visa restrictions on US individuals with bad behavior on issues related to Hong Kong,” Lijian said.
Earlier in the past week, the US first restricted visitor visas for Chinese individuals. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo last week said restrictions on new visas by the US apply to officials “at present and former” ruling Chinese Communist Party “believed to be responsible for, or involved in, undermining Hong Kong’s high level of autonomy.
The US Senate also approved a bill last week that would impose mandatory sanctions on people or companies who support efforts to limit Hong Kong’s autonomy. This includes secondary sanctions on banks that do business with anyone who supports a crackdown on regional autonomy.
Zhao Lijian, a spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, told reporters that China had lodged a complaint with the US over the bill and warned that China would respond with strong retaliatory measures in response to US actions in Hong Kong.
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