CHENGDU, China (AP) – In the more than 40 years since China and the US established formal diplomatic relations, accusations have been exchanged, tensions have risen and fallen, and the two sides have come dangerously close to a direct confrontation.
However, the forced closure of the Chinese Consulate in Houston and the order of China in response to the closure of the American Consulate in the Chinese city of Chengdu mark a new low point in ties between the world’s largest economies that cannot be easily softened .
Mistrust and rancor over disputes over alleged technology theft, national security, human rights, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and the South China Sea are now the main drivers of a long-tried relationship compartmentalize such problems to avoid impeding business ties and cooperation. in managing issues such as North Korea’s nuclear program and conflicts in the Middle East and Africa.
In the future, the prospects for reconciliation seem slim, even if the United States elects a new administration in November.
Chinese authorities seized control of the former United States Consulate in Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan province, on Monday after the closure was ordered in retaliation for a United States order to evict the Chinese Consulate in Houston.
A statement from the State Department expressed disappointment, saying that the consulate “has been at the center of our relations with people in western China, including Tibet, for 35 years.”
“We are disappointed by the decision of the Chinese Communist Party and will strive to continue reaching out to people in this important region through our other positions in China,” he said.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry issued a brief notice saying “competent authorities” entered through the main entrance and seized the facility after it was closed by the US diplomats at 10 am. The exterior of the enclosure.
That conveyed a sense of permanent breakdown that was not felt during previous crises, including the stoning of the United States Embassy in 1999 in response to the NATO bombing of the Chinese Embassy in Serbia, along with the 2001 collision between a US surveillance plane and a Chinese fighter plane over the South China Sea.
A day earlier, the Chinese Foreign Ministry issued a statement of protest for what it called intrusions at the Houston consulate that violated the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations and the China-United States Consular Convention.
“The Chinese side strongly deplores and opposes the movement of the United States to forcibly enter the Chinese Consulate General in Houston and has presented solemn representations. China will make legitimate and necessary reactions, “the statement said.
China maintains consulates in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago and New York, in addition to its embassy in Washington.
The United States has four other consulates in China and an embassy in Beijing, keeping the parties on a par in terms of diplomatic missions.
On Monday, pro-China protesters were escorted out of the closed consulate as workers covered the building’s exterior signs.
Long live the Chinese people! Long live the Communist Party of China! a man yelled before a SWAT team escorted him.
Another briefly showed a shirt that said “SLING OUT USA!” in English before being removed.
Others expressed regret at the closure. An officer removed a bouquet of flowers that a woman had left on the sidewalk outside the consulate entrance.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told reporters in a daily briefing on Monday that the closure was a “legitimate and necessary response to the irrational act” of the closure of the Houston consulate and the entry of US authorities into he.
“We urge the United States to immediately correct its mistakes and create the necessary conditions for the relationship between the two countries to return to normal,” said Wang.
The Chengdu consulate was briefly highlighted when the police chief of the nearby Chongqing city fled there in 2012, precipitating the fall of Chongqing’s politically ambitious leader, Bo Xilai, in China’s biggest political scandal in decades. He also hosted former Vice President Joe Biden during a visit when the current Democratic Party presidential candidate was accompanied by China’s now leader Xi Jinping.
Police closed an area two or three blocks around the consulate on Monday morning, cutting off virtually any view of the property, including the flag. Some vehicles were allowed in after police checks, and others could be seen moving in the distance.
Officers watched closely, even after reopening the area in the afternoon, determined to avoid any signs of unease.
Workers covered the consulate’s signs on the exterior wall shortly after the property was vacated. They included a bronze plaque near the entrance that a worker had tried to remove the night before, but without success.
The move-in activity on Sunday continued past midnight, with flatbed trailers entering the complex and later emerging with large shipping containers.
The impending consulate closure drew a steady stream of spectators over the weekend when Chengdu, like Houston, found itself in the limelight of international politics.
People stopped to take selfies and photos, some waving Chinese flags in a display of patriotism and others simply capturing the moment. A man who attempted to unfold a large banner on Sunday night who called an open letter to the Chinese government was quickly escorted.
The United States alleged that the Houston consulate was a nest for Chinese spies trying to steal data from facilities in Texas, including the Texas A&M medical system and the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center at Houston. China said the allegations were “malicious slander”.
___
Associated Press photographer Ng Han Guan in Chengdu contributed to this report.
