China Banned The American Navy For visting Hong Kong Over Support The Protests

China Banned The American Navy For visting Hong Kong Over Support The Protests
Image: BBC News
China suspended visits by US Navy ships and aircraft to Hong Kong after Washington passed legislation last week, supporting pro-democracy protesters.



Beijing has also issued sanctions against several American human rights groups.

The act calls for an annual review to check whether Hong Kong has sufficient autonomy to justify a special trade status with the US.


President Trump is currently seeking a deal with China to end a trade war.


What Did China Government Say?

The Foreign Ministry said it would suspend a review of requests to visit Hong Kong by US military ships and aircraft from Monday - and warned that further action could be taken.


"We urge the US to correct the errors and stop interfering with our internal affairs," ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told reporters in Beijing.

"China will take further steps, if necessary, to maintain Hong Kong's stability and prosperity and China's sovereignty."

Sanctioned non-governmental organizations (NGOs) include Human Rights Watch, Freedom House, the National Endowment for Democracy, the National Democratic Institute of International Affairs and the International Republican Institute.


"They take some responsibility for the chaos in Hong Kong and must be sanctioned and paid the price," Hua said, without specifying how the measures would be taken.


This Ban Will Effect On the USA?

Several US Navy ships often visit Hong Kong each year, although visits are sometimes suspended when ties between the two countries become strained.


The USS Blue Ridge, the US Seventh Fleet amphibious command ship, was the last US Navy ship to visit Hong Kong in April.





Mass protests erupted in the semi-autonomous territory in June and Chinese officials accused foreign governments, including the United States, of supporting the pro-democracy movement.

In August, China rejected requests for visits from the USS Lake Erie guided-missile cruiser and the USS Green Bay transport vessel but gave no specific reasons.

In September last year, China refused to enter an American warship into Hong Kong after the US imposed sanctions on the purchase of Russian fighter jets.

And in 2016, China blocked the USS aircraft carrier John C Stennis and its escort ships amid a dispute over China's military presence in the South China Sea.

Michael Raska, a security expert at Singapore Nanyang University of Technology, said that from the military point of view, the United States would not be affected by the latest ban "as it can use many naval bases in the region."

However, it sends a signal that US-China tensions will continue to deepen, he told the AFP news agency.


The USA Take Any Action?





However, China quickly warned the US that it would take "firm countermeasures."

The new law requires Washington to monitor Beijing's actions in Hong Kong. The US may revoke the special trade status it has granted to the territory if China undermines the city's rights and freedoms.

Among other things, Hong Kong's special status means that it is unaffected by US sanctions or tariffs imposed on the mainland.

The bill also says the US should allow Hong Kong residents to obtain visas if they have been arrested for participating in nonviolent protests.

Analysts say the move could complicate negotiations between China and the US to end its trade war.

The bill was introduced in June in the early stages of the protests in Hong Kong and was overwhelmingly passed by the House of Representatives in October.

Why are there protests in Hong Kong?
Hong Kong - a British colony until 1997 - is part of China under a model known as "one country, two systems".

According to this model, Hong Kong has a high degree of autonomy and people have freedoms not seen in mainland China.

However, months of protests caused a stir in the city.

The protests began after the government planned to pass a bill that would allow suspects to be extradited to mainland China.


The project was eventually withdrawn, but the unrest evolved into a broader protest against the police and the way Hong Kong is run by Beijing.

Collect From - BBC News

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