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1 1 (August 18, 2020)

handle is hein.crs/govdbkd0001 and id is 1 raw text is: FF. ' ,iE S .r, i , August 18, 2020 China's Foreign Ministry Statements Signal Heightened Concern About U.S. Actions in the 116th Congress With the relationship between the United States and the People's Republic of China (PRC or China) strained on multiple fronts, the two governments have been publicly trading accusations and engaging in sometimes tit-for-tat moves against each other's interests. Amid all the charges and counter-charges, what issues matter most to each side? In the case of China, the government has been using a traditional tool for diplomatic signaling-rare statements in the name of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to call attention to a handful of U.S. actions that China appears to view with particular concern. In the quarter century since 1995, China has issued 27 Foreign Ministry statements. Reflecting the high level of current tension in the U.S.-China relationship, China has issued four of those statements since November 2019, all related to the United States. Three statements condemned laws passed by the 116th Congress related to China's northwest region of Xinjiang and China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, and one denounced a May 19, 2020, public statement by Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo congratulating Taiwan's president on the start of her second term. Since 1995, China has only once issued four Foreign Ministry statements in a shorter timeframe, in 2016. Since 1995, it has never before issued more than two consecutive Foreign Ministry statements related to a single country. Including a 2018 statement, China has now issued five Foreign Ministry statements in a row related to the United States. The implications of the recent statements are unclear. Some earlier statements preceded sustained Chinese campaigns of military or economic coercion. The Trump Administration signaled a new, more confrontational approach to relations with China in its December 2017 National Security Strategy, which characterized the United States as being in great power competition' with both China and Russia. In recent months, the Trump Administration has castigated China for failing to prevent the SARS-CoV-2 virus from exploding into a global pandemic; allegedly stealing U.S. intellectual property; repressing Muslim citizens in its Xinjiang region; and imposing a sweeping national security law on Hong Kong. In May 2020, Secretary Pompeo criticized China's spiteful moves to bar Taiwan from attending a virtual meeting of the World Health Assembly, the governing body of the World Health Organization, as an observer. In July 2020, Secretary Pompeo alleged China was using intimidation to undermine the sovereign rights of Southeast Asian coastal states in the South China Sea. The Administration has also raised security concerns related to the operations of Chinese technology firms. In an August 12, 2020, interview, Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Le Yucheng denounced U.S. repressive moves against China, which he said had no legal basis at all. He criticized the United States for imposing increased tariffs on U.S. imports from China, restricting sales of certain components to Chinese telecommunications company Huawei, banning transactions with the parent company of Chinese social media application TikTok, detaining Chinese citizens (for alleged visa fraud), selling arms to Taiwan, sanctioning PRC and Hong Kong government officials, and, in July 2020, ordering the closure of China's Consulate-General in Houston. China responded to the latter move by ordering the closure of the U.S. consulate in the western Chinese city of Chengdu. With its four most recent Foreign Ministry statements, China appears to be signaling particular concern over three recently enacted U.S. laws and Secretary Pompeo's May 2020 statement. China appears to assess that these U.S. actions challenge China's sovereignty in Xinjiang and Hong Kong and over Taiwan. The PRC has never controlled Taiwan, but claims sovereignty over the island democracy and has repeatedly vowed to unify with it, by force if necessary. The statements are listed below. * A November 28, 2019, Foreign Ministry statement expresses firm opposition to enactment of the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act (HKHRDA, P.L. 116-76), which authorizes sanctions on those responsible for violating human rights in Hong Kong. The Foreign Ministry statement reminds the United States that Hong Kong is part of China and Hong Kong's affairs are China's internal affairs where no foreign government or force shall interfere. The statement threatens countermeasures and says the United States must bear all consequences. * A May 20, 2020, Foreign Ministry statement expresses strong indignation and condemnation of Secretary Pompeo's congratulatory statement to Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen on the start of her second term. Pompeo is the highest-level U.S. official to have ever issued such a statement; an Obama Administration Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs congratulated Tsai on her first inauguration in 2016. The 2020 Foreign Ministry statement demands that the United States stop official interactions and moves aimed at upgrading substantive relations with Taiwan and stop meddling in China's internal affairs. It warns, China will take necessary measures in response, and, The U.S. side must bear all consequences. (As a condition for establishment of p\w -- , gn'a', goo mppm qq\ a , q 'S I 11LULANJILiN,

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