On his last full day in office, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo declared that China is committing genocide and crimes against humanity through its campaign of repression against Uighur Muslims. Pompeo’s declaration is the strongest rebuke from any government of China’s atrocities in Xinjiang and one that is sure to affect how the incoming Biden administration interacts with China.

Noting that the crimes are continuing, Pompeo specified that Beijing is responsible for the arbitrary imprisonment of more than a million people, forced sterilization, torture, forced labor, and restrictions on freedoms of religion, expression, and movement.