China warned the United States it will “strike back” against any “reckless” action. Washington should rescind its recent sanctions that targeted individuals and entities related to Beijing’s human rights violations.
On Friday, the United States placed severe human rights-related sanctions against individuals and entities from China. This included individuals and entities linked to Myanmar, North Korea, and Bangladesh.
Wang Wenbin, spokesperson for China’s Foreign Ministry, denounced the sanctions and called them “perverse actions”.
“We urge the US to immediately withdraw the relevant wrong decision and stop interfering in China’s internal affairs and harming China’s interests.
“If the US acts recklessly, China will take effective measures to strike back resolutely,” Wang said during a news conference in Beijing on Monday.
These sanctions are the latest in a series of measures that were announced at Biden’s two day virtual Summit for Democracy. Biden also announced initiatives to support democracy in the United States and to strengthen democracy around the globe.
Wang promised Monday that Beijing would “unwaveringly defend national sovereignty, security and development interests”
He also defended China’s policies regarding the Muslim Uighur population in the autonomous region Xinjiang. He stated that China is determined to “contain violence, terrorism and separatism”
“The perverse actions of the United States cannot destroy the overall shape of Xinjiang’s development, stop China’s progress, or reverse the trend of historical development.”
The US Treasury targeted SenseTime, a Chinese artificial intelligence company, for allegedly having developed facial recognition programs that could identify ethnic Uighurs.
Xinjiang: Mass detention
UN experts and rights organizations estimate that more than a million people, mainly Uighurs, were detained or imprisoned recently in a large system of camps in Xinjiang.
Unofficial, independent UK tribunal ruled Thursday that the Chinese government committed genocide and crimes against humanity, as well as torture against Uighurs, and other minorities.
Sir Geoffrey Nice, QC, head of the Uighur tribunal and prominent human rights lawyer, stated that the Chinese government targeted Muslim Uighur populations with forced birth control, sterilisation, and other policies to decrease their population.
He said that “this vast apparatus of state repression could not exist if a plan was not authorised at the highest levels”.
China denies any abuses in Xinjiang. However, the US government and many rights organizations claim that Beijing is committing genocide there.
Wang also criticised the US ‘s recent Summit for Democracy, claiming that Washington can not decide if a country is democratic using its own criteria.
Wang stated that the Summit for Democracy had “exactly betrayed US true nature of a destroyer and defender of democracy”
Wang called upon all countries to come together and tackle global problems in order to build a society that will share a common future.
He also condemned the sanctions against SenseTime, claiming that the decision was “based upon lies and false information”.
The startup announced Monday that it would delay a $767m Hong Kong initial public offering after being blacklisted by the US for genocide allegations in Xinjiang.
Blacklisting would make it impossible for US investment banks that are involved in Hong Kong listings to participate or for US citizens to invest in the offering.
