US President Donald Trump on Tuesday stripped Hong Kong of preferential trade treatment and authorized sanctions on banks over China’s clampdown in the financial hub, infuriating Beijing, which vowed to retaliate.
In a discursive news conference dominated by attacks on his domestic rivals, Trump declared himself to be the toughest president ever on China, a country he is increasingly positioning as his nemesis ahead of the US presidential election in November.
Trump announced that he had issued an executive order on Hong Kong as he predicted decline for the territory, on which Beijing recently imposed tough national security legislation.
Photo: Reuters
“Hong Kong will now be treated the same as mainland China — no special privileges, no special economic treatment and no export of sensitive technologies,” Trump said in the Rose Garden at the White House.
“Their freedom has been taken away; their rights have been taken away, and with it goes Hong Kong, in my opinion, because it will no longer be able to compete with free markets. A lot of people will be leaving Hong Kong,” Trump said.
Trump also said that he had signed into law the Hong Kong Autonomy Act, which authorizes sanctions against Chinese officials and Hong Kong police seen as infringing on the territory’s autonomy — and, crucially, any banks that make significant transactions with them.
Lawmakers hope the new law will force all but provincial Chinese banks to choose between abetting Beijing’s efforts in Hong Kong, or being able to conduct transactions in US dollars and operate in the world’s largest economy.
“This law gives my administration powerful new tools to hold responsible the individuals and the entities involved in extinguishing Hong Kong’s freedom,” Trump said.
China yesterday vowed to retaliate, saying that the act “maliciously slanders” its legislation in Hong Kong.
“China will make necessary responses to protect its legitimate interests, and impose sanctions on relevant US personnel and entities,” the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
The White House acknowledged concerns that the act, a tougher follow-up to a law last year, limits the president’s leeway to waive sanctions.
However, the act enjoyed overwhelming bipartisan support, meaning that the US Congress could likely override any presidential veto.
“Today, the United States made clear to China that it cannot continue its assault on freedom and human rights in Hong Kong without severe repercussions,” said US Senator Chris Van Hollen, a Democrat who spearheaded the law.
“The Chinese government’s aggression merits this swift rebuke,” he said.
South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol yesterday declared emergency martial law, accusing the opposition of being “anti-state forces intent on overthrowing the regime” amid parliamentary wrangling over a budget bill. “To safeguard a liberal South Korea from the threats posed by North Korea’s communist forces and to eliminate anti-state elements plundering people’s freedom and happiness, I hereby declare emergency martial law,” Yoon said in a live televised address to the nation. “With no regard for the livelihoods of the people, the opposition party has paralysed governance solely for the sake of impeachments, special investigations, and shielding their leader from justice,” he
The Mainland Affairs Council and lawmakers yesterday accused a visiting Chinese university student of denigrating Taiwan’s sovereignty by referring to the national baseball team that won a first-ever Premier12 title as “China, Taipei team” (中國台北隊). “We deeply regret the Chinese student’s words, that have hurt the feelings of Taiwanese... The Ma Ying-jeou Foundation, as the organizers, should remind group members not to use inappropriate words and behavior,” a council statement said. “We hope these young Chinese can accurately observe the true views of Taiwanese, which would be a positive development for interactions between young people on the two sides of the Taiwan
PHONE CALLS: Two US lawmakers told Lai about the US Congress’ bipartisan support for Taiwan to preserve its democracy and freedom, and for stronger bilateral ties US House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson said during a telephone call with President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday morning that recognition of Taiwan is at the core of the US’ Indo-Pacific strategy, Presidential Office spokesperson Karen Kuo (郭雅慧) said. The call marked the first time Lai had spoken directly with Johnson, of the Republican Party, since taking office in May. Lai also had a call with US House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries of the Democratic Party and a videoconference with Republican Senator Roger Wicker while in Guam, during a stopover on his way back from visiting the nation’s allies in the Pacific,
China is trying to set a "red line" for the incoming Trump administration and US allies by stepping up military activities in the region, a senior Taiwan security official said, including likely war games this weekend around Taiwan. China has held two rounds of war games around Taiwan so far this year, and its forces operate nearby on a daily basis. The official confirmed concerns expressed by other security officials in the region who have previously told Reuters that China could launch new drills to coincide with Taiwan President William Lai's (賴清德) trip to the Pacific this week which included visits to
RSS