China announced Wednesday it will impose visa restrictions on US citizens engaged in what it called “egregious conduct” with regard to Tibet, the mountainous region that China has been accused of illegally incorporating after invading it in 1950.
The announcement, made by Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian, warned that the move would target “US individuals with egregious conduct related to Tibet issues,” without further elaboration.
“We urge the US to stop interfering in China’s internal affairs with Tibet-related issues … so as to avoid further damage to China-US relations,” the spokesman continued.
The move comes one day after US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced that the Trump administration was barring Chinese officials from entering the United States who had restricted American authorities, diplomats, journalists and tourists from entering the Tibetan regions.
“Beijing has continued systematically to obstruct travel to the Tibetan Autonomous Region (TAR) and other Tibetan areas by U.S. diplomats and other officials, journalists, and tourists, while PRC officials and other citizens enjoy far greater access to the United States,” Pompeo’s statement read.
“Therefore, today I am announcing visa restrictions on PRC government and Chinese Communist Party officials determined to be ‘substantially involved in the formulation or execution of policies related to access for foreigners to Tibetan areas,” he continued.
The developments with Tibet come as tensions continue to mount between the US and China, as relations worsen over issues related to the coronavirus pandemic and Hong Kong.
In late June, Pompeo announced that the US would cease exporting US-origin defense equipment to Hong Kong as mainland China tightened its grip on the city.
Citing Beijing’s “decision to eviscerate Hong Kong’s freedoms,” Pompeo said the US was being forced “to re-evaluate its policies toward the territory.”
The decision came on the same day that the Communist nation approved a sweeping and contentious national security law that will allow authorities to crack down on what it deems subversive and secessionist activity in Hong Kong.
The law has been slammed by many as the Chinese Communist Party’s boldest effort to date to control the territory, which has maintained a semi-autonomous system separate from that of mainland China.
Last year, pro-democracy protests took over Hong Kong for nearly a year and left the former British colony in a tense power struggle with the CCP.
This latest piece of legislation was passed amid warnings and criticism both in Hong Kong and internationally that it would be used to curb opposition voices in the Asian financial hub.
In an effort to voice its opposition to the bill, the State Department announced on June 26 that it would be placing visa restrictions on CCP officials involved in efforts to restrict Hong Kong’s autonomy, something the territory was guaranteed when it was returned to China in 1997.
“President @realDonaldTrump promised to punish the CCP officials responsible for eviscerating Hong Kong’s freedoms. Today, we are taking action to do just that– we’ve announced visa restrictions on CCP officials responsible for undermining Hong Kong’s autonomy and human rights,” Pompeo tweeted at the time.
China offered a tit-for-tat response soon after, imposing its own visa ban on Americans who interfered with matters relating to Hong Kong.