President Trump says he is preparing to take action against China this week over its plan to impose national security laws on Hong Kong.
Beijing’s move has triggered street demonstrations in Hong Kong amid fears it will end the one-country, two-systems guarantee that China gave when the United Kingdom returned the colony in 1997.
The president has previously been reluctant to jeopardize his relationship with President Xi Jinping, which helped deliver a trade deal earlier this year.
But during an event in the White House Rose Garden, he indicated that action was coming.
“It’s something you are going to be hearing about over the next … before the end of the week… very powerfully, I think,” he said in response to a question about whether he would sanction China.
He offered no further detail.
Hong Kong has enjoyed relative autonomy from Beijing since being returned to China.
However, protesters fear that is about to change after it emerged that officials are attempting to enforce Article 23 of Basic Law, which demands the city “enact laws on its own to prohibit any act of treason, secession, sedition [or] subversion against the Central People’s Government.”
The proposal was immediately condemned by world leaders and members of Congress.
All eyes are now on the president. Last year, Trump gave a muted response amid crackdowns on democracy protesters. At the time, his administration was deep in trade negotiations.
Things have changed this year, with Trump repeatedly expressing his outrage at China’s handling of the coronavirus and the pandemic that has killed almost 100,000 people in the United States so far.
National security adviser Robert O’Brien recently said the legislation could lead to American sanctions and threaten Hong Kong’s position as a global financial center.
That message was repeated by White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany during a briefing as she described the president’s position: “He’s displeased with China’s efforts and … it’s hard to see how Hong Kong can remain a financial hub if China takes over.”
