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Bochen Han

The Republican-led US House of Representatives voted on Tuesday to advance legislation that could close Hong Kong’s diplomatic offices in the country and significantly curb Sino-American academic exchange.
The two bills were passed as part of ‘China week’, a House Republican-led effort to advance mainland-related legislation. More than a dozen bills targeting Beijing’s economic, political and technological influence passed on Monday.
All bills that pass the House must also clear the full Senate before they can be sent to US President Joe Biden’s desk to be signed into law.
The bipartisan Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office (HKETO) Certification Act would require the US secretary of state to review the city’s three American trade missions – in New York, San Francisco and Washington – and strip them of privileges if they are found not to operate with a “high degree of autonomy” from the People’s Republic of China.

The legislation, sponsored by Congressman Chris Smith, Republican of New Jersey, passed 413-3. A version of the bill previously cleared a committee in the Democratic-led Senate.
There are 14 HKETOs outside mainland China. The offices primarily carry out trade promotion and cultural-diplomacy responsibilities and are not diplomatic missions because Hong Kong is not a sovereign state. But they possess some of the privileges and immunities of diplomatic missions granted in many countries.
Since Hong Kong promulgated its national security law in 2020, US lawmakers have questioned whether the city remains sufficiently autonomous to justify having its own representation separate from Beijing’s missions.
US-based Hong Kong activists have called the offices “vectors for [Hong Kong’s] malign influence”, while the city’s government has denied the accusations, arguing the offices have operated according to law.
Several Hong Kong groups hailed the bill’s passage on Tuesday, with Mason Wong of the Hong Kong Democracy Council calling it a “major step forward” in holding HKETOs accountable.
The second bill passed on Tuesday would prevent Department of Homeland Security (DHS) funds from going to US schools that “have a relationship with” mainland-funded cultural institutes or universities with ties to the Chinese military.
Sponsored by August Pfluger, Republican of Texas, the bill passed 249-161 despite having no Democratic co-sponsors and after failing a motion to have the bill returned to committee.
Pfluger’s bill came after numerous congressional efforts to decouple US-China cooperation in education.

Just last week, Georgia Tech announced it would end its partnership with China’s Tianjin University, months after the House Select committee on China launched an investigation into the arrangement.
Pfluger said on Tuesday his proposal would guarantee “that US institutions are free from the [Chinese Communist Party] malign influence”.
But the bill faced vocal opposition from some Democrats arguing that its broad language would effectively prohibit DHS funding to schools partnering “with virtually any Chinese university” and cause a chilling effect on American scholarship.
“In all likelihood, universities across this country will have to shut down student exchange programmes, deny student study abroad opportunities and stop hosting guest lectures, panel events or sporting events with Chinese universities,” said Congressman Bennie Thompson, Democrat of Mississippi, who pushed the bill to have a waiver process.
“This bill is so totally divorced from the very real concerns we all have when it comes to Chinese espionage and national security,” Thompson added.
In floor amendments to the bill, the list of targeted mainland entities was expanded to include the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the country’s top science institute, and any institution that “aides, abets, or enables the detention, imprisonment, persecution, or forced labour of Uygur Muslims”.
Ahead of the vote on Pfluger’s bill, the Biden administration sent a release supporting the bill’s intent while saying “there may be more appropriate ways” to stop funding from being allocated to academic institutions susceptible to Beijing’s financial influence.

Separately on Tuesday, there was floor discussion of a Republican-backed bill to revive the China Initiative, a defunct Department of Justice programme focused on tackling economic espionage.
The initiative, introduced under Donald Trump’s administration, was the subject of widespread criticism for excessive and misguided prosecutions that put a cloud of suspicion over Chinese-Americans.
Sponsored by Lance Gooden, Republican of Texas, the bill would create a “CCP Initiative” housed under the Justice Department to counter nation-state threats, curb spying and develop an enforcement strategy concerning researchers in labs and universities. It is expected to be voted on Wednesday.
Observers have said it is unlikely that all the bills passed this week will become law before US election day, November 5, or before the end of the congressional session in January.
Still, at least one might find an audience soon after.
Even if the HKETO bill does not become law by January, the city’s status will continue to come under pressure from Congress in the next few years, according to Zack Cooper of the American Enterprise Institute.
“Given the worsening legal and political situation in the city … I suspect that even if Hong Kong-related bills don’t get through this year, they will have substantial support next Congress,” Cooper said.


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US-China relations

Hong Kong trade offices, academic exchange targeted in bills passed by US House

The US House of Representatives passed a bill on Tuesday that could result in the closing of Hong Kong’s three trade missions in the country.  Photo: Shutterstock

An undated photo of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office (HKETO) in Washington. Photo: Handout

US congressman Bennie Thompson, a Mississippi Democrat, has voiced concern about the bill that cuts Department of Homeland Security funding for schools partnering with Chinese institutions. Photo: Getty Images via AFP)

Republican presidential nominee and former US president Donald Trump championed the first China Initiative, a now-defunct US Justice Department programme focused on tackling economic espionage. Photo: Reuters

Bill restricting US contracts with Chinese biotech firms among first to pass House in ‘China Week’

A medical worker prepares a shot of Sinovac Biotech vaccine against the COVID-19 coronavirus disease at a community health station in Yantai, east China’s Shandong province, January 5, 2021. Photo: EPA-EFE

The Hong Kong Economic and Trade Offices in San Francisco is one of three locations that a US House bill targeted on Monday. Photo: Handout

Republican congressman Chris Smith of New Jersey sponsored the bill on Hong Kong. Photo: Bloomberg

Democratic congressman Jim McGovern of Massachusetts is a human-rights hawk. Photo: Getty Images via AFP

The House also passed a bill adding the drone maker DJI Technologies to a list of providers of telecommunications and video equipment considered a risk to US national security. Photo: Getty Images via AFP 

‘China week’ at US House puts biotech firms, Hong Kong offices in legislative cross hairs

Various pieces of US legislation intended to blunt China’s influence and competitive edge are soon due for consideration in Washington. Photo: Shutterstock

US House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, is a critic of China. Photo: Getty Images/TNS

Wuxi Biologics, a Chinese biotech company, has drawn scrutiny from US lawmakers. Photo: Wuxi Biologics

US President Joe Biden (centre) poses with Pacific island nation leaders at the White House in Washington on September 25, 2023. The American leader has prioritised alliance-building in the Indo-Pacific. Photo: AP

US warns of ‘new and heightened risks’ in Hong Kong due to national security laws

A wanted poster of fugitive activist Nathan Law Kwun-chung, whose passport was cancelled under the city’s domestic national security law. The US has warned that Hong Kong’s new security ordinance increases risks to businesses and individuals operating there. Photo: Sam Tsang

Hong Kong, Beijing slam US advisory on Article 23 law as ‘devious tactic’ to hurt economy

A minister has defended the introduction of national security legislation following criticisms from the US. Photo: Felix Wong

Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Erick Tsang has argued candidacy requirements for elections are “not a restriction” as “true patriots” would be able to secure the necessary nominations. Photo: Jelly Tse

US warning on Hong Kong won’t hurt city as firms favour ‘profits over politics’: observers

Thirty US companies have set up or expanded their business in the city during the first half of the year, according to InvestHK. Photo: Edmond So

A tank on display in Russia. Hong Kong has been accused of being a “significant transshipment points” for the country to source dual-use goods for its armed forces. Photo: EPA-EFE

US government departments have warned of “new and heightened risks” for companies and individuals operating in the city. Photo: AFP

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Republican-led measure cutting Homeland Security funds for schools follows efforts to decouple Sino-American cooperation in education


Republican-led measure cutting Homeland Security funds for schools follows efforts to decouple Sino-American cooperation in education.
