US punishes 24 Chinese officials on eve of first talks under Biden
By Steven Lee Myers, Austin Ramzy and Lara Jakes
March 18, 2021 6.01am
Normal text size
Advertisement
Seoul: The United States punished 24 Chinese officials on Wednesday for undermining Hong Kong’s democratic freedoms, acting days before the first scheduled meeting of senior Chinese and US diplomats since President Joe Biden took office.
In diplomatic terms, the timing of the action was intentional, continuing a testy start to relations between the Biden administration and China after a tumultuous four years under former President Donald Trump.
Golden Bauhinia Square, in Wan Chai area of Hong Kong. Setting a confrontational tone ahead of meetings in Alaska, the United States punished Chinese officials involved in eroding democracy in Hong Kong.
US punishes 24 Chinese officials on eve of first talks under Biden
smh.com.au - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from smh.com.au Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
World News at a Glance
benningtonbanner.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from benningtonbanner.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
During the hearing, GOP members grilled Mr. Kahl over his tweets accusing Republicans of being part of “ethnic cleansing,” criticizing last year’s drone strike that killed Iranian Quds Force leader Gen.
Qassem Soleimani, and backing the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, which critics say provides Tehran with a pathway to nuclear-tipped missiles.
“Unfortunately, in the past in many cases, your public policy positions have been couched in partisan politics rather than fact-based analysis,” said Sen.
James Inhofe of Oklahoma, the ranking Republican on the committee.
Mr. Inhofe was especially critical of Mr. Kahl after the contents of a phone call he had with the nominee leaked and falsely claimed he had “flipped” into backing Mr. Kahl‘s confirmation.