China to retaliate with sanctions on US officials, NGO leaders over Hong Kong issues

China will sanction United States officials, lawmakers and leaders of non-governmental organizations who it says have “performed poorly” on Hong Kong issues, the foreign ministry announced.

The U.S. in March sanctioned six Chinese and Hong Kong officials who it alleged were involved in “transnational repression” and acts threatening to further erode the city’s autonomy. The officials included Justice Secretary Paul Lam, security office director Dong Jingwei and former police commissioner Raymond Siu.

In a retaliatory move against Washington, D.C., on Monday, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun in Beijing said China strongly condemned the acts, calling them “despicable.” The U.S. has seriously interfered in the affairs of Hong Kong and violated international law principles, he said

“China has decided to impose sanctions on U.S. congressmen, officials, and NGO leaders who have performed poorly on Hong Kong-related issues,” Guo said, adding the response was made according to the anti-foreign sanctions law.

He did not provide more details about who is being targeted.

Guo also issued a warning about Hong Kong, saying the southern Chinese city’s affairs are not subject to U.S. interference. Any actions considered wrong by the Chinese government that are taken on Hong Kong-related issues will be met with firm countermeasures and reciprocal retaliation, he said.

The tit-for-tat sanctions over Hong Kong’s human rights issues are the latest sign of rising tensions between Beijing and Washington, which are already locked in a trade war that has rattled businesses on both sides.

Beijing separately warned other countries on Monday against making trade deals with the U.S. to China’s detriment.

The U.S. sanctions on officials in March were not the first related to the former British colony, which returned to Chinese rule in 1997. During Donald Trump’s first presidential term, his government imposed sanctions on Hong Kong and Chinese officials for undermining Hong Kong’s autonomy.

In 2021, former President Joe Biden’s administration slapped more sanctions on officials over Beijing’s crackdown on political freedoms in the semi-autonomous city.

Since China imposed a national security law in 2020 to quell the 2019 massive anti-government protests, Hong Kong authorities have prosecuted many of the city’s leading activists. Media outlets known for their critical reports of the government shut down following arrests of their top management. Dozens of civil society groups disbanded.

Over the past two years, Hong Kong authorities have issued arrest warrants for 19 activists based overseas, with bounties of $1 million Hong Kong dollars ($128,536) for information leading to each of their arrests. Some of them resided in the U.S.

The years-long crackdown has drawn criticism from foreign governments, especially because the city was promised its Western-style civil liberties and semi-autonomy would be kept intact for at least 50 years during the 1997 handover.

The Beijing and Hong Kong governments insist the law is necessary for the city’s stability.

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Tian Macleod Ji contributed to this report from Bangkok.