Observer Report
Beijing
Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday called on his troops “put all (their) minds and energy on preparing for war.”
Xi called on Chinese troops to “maintain a state of high alert” during his visit to the People’s Liberation Army Marine Corps in Chaozhou City and urged Chinese troops to stay “absolutely loyal, absolutely pure, and absolutely reliable.”
President Jinping’s visit comes in the backdrop of worsening relations between China and the US, with the two powers trading barbs over Washington’s relations with Taiwan and the Coronavirus pandemic.
Meanwhile, China on Thursday said new US sanctions on officials responsible for Hong Kong security are an attempt to undermine the city’s stability and threatened unspecified countermeasures.
Foreign ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said China “firmly opposes and strongly condemns” the US Hong Kong Autonomy Act, which requires the secretary of state to report to Congress on people seen to be impeding civil rights in the territory.
Ten Chinese central government and Hong Kong officials were included in this year’s report, including Chief Executive Carrie Lam and Police Commissioner Chris Tang.
The report “grossly interfered in China’s internal affairs”, further exposing Washington’s “sinister intentions to undermine Hong Kong’s prosperity and stability and contain China’s development”, Zhao said.
“If the US insists on going its own way, China will take resolute countermeasures to safeguard national sovereignty and security interests, and safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese companies and related personnel,” Zhao said.
The sanctions include visa restrictions and potentially bar dealings between the named individuals and US financial institutions. The same officials were sanctioned under an executive order in August, shortly after Beijing imposed a sweeping national security law on the former British colony.
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