China promises reciprocal policies over US sanctions

China summoned the acting top US diplomat in Beijing to protest about US sanctions on Chinese officials over Hong Kong, and vowed to take “reciprocal” countermeasures.

The United States on Monday imposed financial sanctions and a travel ban on 14 Chinese officials over their role in adopting a national security law for Hong Kong and the disqualification last month of elected opposition legislators in Hong Kong.

The targeted officials are the vice chairpersons of the National People’s Congress Standing Committee, the top decision-making body of the Chinese legislature.

China criticized the sanctions. The foreign ministry said on its website on Tuesday that Chinese vice foreign minister Zheng Zeguang had summoned the acting representative in the US embassy to express “solemn protest and strong condemnation.”

Zheng also threatened “reciprocal” actions from China.

“US barbaric actions will only invoke the intense anger of the Chinese people against anti-China forces in the United States and cause 1.4 billion Chinese people, including our compatriots in Hong Kong, to full recognize the US devious intentions and strengthen the resolve of the Chinese government in implementing the Hong Kong national security law,” he said.

Earlier Tuesday, China’s Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office and Chinese foreign ministry’s office of the commissioner to Hong Kong issued separate condemnations of the US sanctions.

The sanctions announced by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo prohibit the 14 individuals and their immediate members from traveling to the United States. Any assets the officials might have within the United States will be blocked and US individuals and companies will be banned from dealing with them.

The Trump administration earlier slapped sanctions on Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam, the Asian financial hub’s current and former police chiefs and other top officials in August for what it said was their role in “curtailing freedoms.”

Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said that China urged the United States to withdraw the “erroneous decision” of imposing sanctions, vowing “firm and strong countermeasures” against the egregious act by the US side to defend its sovereignty, security and development interests.

“The above-mentioned move by the US side severely violates basic norms governing international relations, interferes in China’s internal affairs and harms China-US relations,” Hua said. “The Chinese government and people express strong indignation at and strongly condemn the outrageous, unscrupulous, crazy and vile act of the US side,” she added.

Hua said Hong Kong is part of China, its affairs are purely China’s internal affairs, and the United States is in no position to interfere. The NPC Standing Committee’s legislation on safeguarding national security in Hong Kong in accordance with the Constitution to improve governance on Hong Kong and crack down on criminals is totally within China’s sovereignty.