The United States has ordered China to close its diplomatic consulate in Houston, the Chinese foreign ministry said on Wednesday, striking yet another blow to the rapidly deteriorating relations between the two countries.
In the hours after the Trump administration notified the Chinese of its decision, smoke was seen coming out of a courtyard inside the consulate as employees dumped what appeared to be documents on burning barrels, according to a video posted by KPRC-TV, a station. local television. .
Houston police and fire departments responded to reports of a fire Tuesday night, but did not enter the building, over which the Chinese have sovereignty.
The shutdown in Houston was the latest effort by the Trump administration to tighten the reins of diplomats, journalists, academics, and other Chinese in the United States. The restrictions have included Cold War-like travel rules for diplomats and requiring various Chinese state news organizations to register as diplomatic entities. The administration is also considering banning travel to the United States by members of the Communist Party and their families, a measure that would affect 270 million people.
Wang Wenbin, a spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, urged the United States to reverse the decision immediately. “Otherwise China will certainly make the necessary and legitimate reactions,” he said, suggesting that China could, at a minimum, close one of the American consulates in China.
Mr. Wang called the measure unprecedented and illegal under international law, and described it as the latest in a series of attacks.
“For some time, the United States government has blamed China with stigmatization and unwarranted attacks against China’s social system, harassing Chinese diplomatic and consular personnel in the United States, intimidating and questioning Chinese students and confiscating your personal electrical devices, including stopping them. without cause, “he said.
Closing a consulate is serious business, but it is unprecedented in times of diplomatic tension.
In 2017, the Trump administration ordered Russia to close its consulate in San Francisco, along with two annexes near New York and Washington, in retaliation for Russian restrictions on the number of U.S. diplomats in Moscow. Those movements grew out of fury over Russia’s interference in the 2016 presidential election, the consequences of which are still being felt, despite Trump’s attempt to reach Russian President Vladimir V. Putin.
In addition to its embassy in Washington, China operates consulates in four other cities: New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco.
The effect of the closure on relationships, and travel, remained uncertain. Consulates mainly process visas for travelers visiting China; The Houston consulate handled those in the southern states, from Texas to Florida. Travel between the two countries has been severely limited in any case due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Hu Xijin, editor of The Global Times, a nationalist newspaper controlled by the Communist Party, called the US movement outrageous, particularly given the short time that Chinese diplomats must eliminate within 72 hours.
“This is a manifestation of panic,” he wrote in a note posted on Weibo, the Chinese social media platform. “It appears that Washington does not have an end result.”
