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Vivian Au

William Zheng

Edith Lin

China’s embassy in the US has warned of strong countermeasures if proposed legislation aimed at closing Hong Kong’s trade offices continues to advance through Congress, as officials from the city condemned the proposal as a “fact-twisting political attack”.
The Hong Kong government on Wednesday also strongly condemned US lawmakers for “grossly interfering” in the city’s internal affairs by advancing the legislation.
The day before, the Republican-led United States House of Representatives voted to pass two bills that would allow for the closure of the three Hong Kong Economic and Trade Offices in the country and significantly curb Sino-American academic exchanges.
The move was part of the Republican Party’s “China Week” drive to advance proposed legislation related to Beijing. More than a dozen bills targeting China’s economic, political and technological influence were also passed on Monday.
The Senate will still need to clear them before the president can sign them into law.
An embassy spokesman on Tuesday night said: “Some individuals from the US side are manipulating Hong Kong-related issues, concocting sinister laws and suppressing Hong Kong’s development for political purposes.
“China strongly deplores and firmly opposes this and has made solemn démarches to the US side … If the US insists on going ahead with it, China will take resolute and strong countermeasures.”
Beijing would display “unwavering resolve” in safeguarding national sovereignty, security and development interests, he said.
The spokesman also urged American politicians to stop pursuing the bills to avoid causing greater harm to the stability and development of Sino-US relations.
It was an undeniable fact that foreign investors were embracing a more secure, stable and predictable business environment in Hong Kong, and residents’ rights and freedoms were fully protected under the law, the embassy added.
Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Algernon Yau Ying-wah said on Wednesday the legislative effort was “purely political slander”, adding the offices had been fulfilling their function based on actual needs.
He said the offices, set up according to the city’s Basic Law mini-constitution, had been acting in accordance with foreign laws to connect with politicians, businesses and think tanks on relevant issues.
But Yau also struck a positive note on US-Hong Kong business ties.
“We are very confident that the business sector will still be investing in Hong Kong,” he said, noting the city was home to 1,200 American companies. “[The passing of the bill] is not creating any benefit to anybody at all.”
He cited survey figures from the city’s American Chamber of Commerce showing that 80 per cent of its members felt “safe” doing business in Hong Kong, while 70 per cent said they believed the national security law would not affect businesses.
A Hong Kong government spokesman also expressed strong condemnation of the legislative effort.
“The US House of Representatives’ fact-twisting attack on Hong Kong is politically driven, violates international law and the basic norms governing international relations and grossly interferes in the affairs of Hong Kong,” he said.
“The so-called act is a self-deception of double standards. Despite the US having the most stringent national security legislation, the act is a malicious slander against the just and legitimate objective of the implementation of the Hong Kong National Security Law and the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance.”

If passed, the bipartisan Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office Certification Act will 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 to operate without a “high degree of autonomy” from the People’s Republic of China.
Professor Wang Jiangyu from the City University of Hong Kong’s School of Law said he expected Beijing to be very “measured” in any response it made, given the very limited options available.
“In theory, Beijing has options like imposing sanctions on the key sponsors of the bill or shutting down some US political institutions in Hong Kong, but in practice, there are no obvious targets in town,” said Wang, who is also the director of the university’s Centre for Chinese and Comparative Law.
The bill’s main sponsor, congressman Chris Smith, was sanctioned by Beijing in 2020, while the US had few government institutions remaining in Hong Kong since the national security law was imposed that year, he noted.
Wang said Beijing would only consider steps targeting the US consulate in Hong Kong if Beijing and Washington suffered a major diplomatic fallout.
The Hong Kong government spokesman noted the US had reaped substantial economic advantages from the city, achieving a trade surplus of US$271.5 billion over the past decade – the highest among its global trading partners.
“If the US insists on undermining the mutually beneficial relations between Hong Kong and the US through the so-called Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office Certification Act, it will ultimately harm the interests of the US and its companies,” he said.
The spokesman added that the city’s legal system was robust and transparent, with the national security law stipulating that human rights should be respected and residents granted rights and freedoms under the Basic Law and other international covenants.
The spokesman also said the latest move from Congress interfered in the affairs of the city by disregarding that human rights and the rule of law were properly protected by the Hong Kong government in accordance with the law.
On Tuesday, the House of Representatives also passed another bill which would prevent Department of Homeland Security funds from going to US schools that “have a relationship” with mainland Chinese-funded cultural institutes or universities with ties to the military.
The bill was sponsored by August Pfluger, a Republican politician from Texas, and passed 249-161 despite having no Democratic cosponsors and a failed motion to have the bill returned to the relevant committee.
Hong Kong has 14 trade offices outside the mainland. The offices primarily carry out trade promotion and are not diplomatic missions as Hong Kong is not a sovereign state.
But they possess some of the privileges and immunities of diplomatic missions granted in many countries.


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The Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in Washington is among those facing closure if the bill passes. Photo: Handout

The US Senate will still need to clear the bill before the president can sign it into law. Photo: AFP

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

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Hong Kong’s Economic and Trade Office in Washington. City leader John Lee has vowed to make the outposts stronger. Photo: Handout

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News

Hong Kong

Politics

Chinese embassy issues warning after legislation advances through Congress targeting city’s three trade offices in US


Chinese embassy issues warning after legislation advances through Congress targeting city’s three trade offices in US.


US-China relations

Hong Kong national security law (NSL)

China’s military

Hong Kong Basic Law