US plans diplomatic boycott of Olympics

Beijing, Dec. 7: China warned on Tuesday the United States would “pay the price” for a diplomatic boycott of the Beijing Winter Olympics over human rights concerns.

The US move — which stopped short of preventing athletes from attending — comes after Washington spent months wrangling over what position to take on the Games, beginning in February next year, over what it has termed China’s “genocide” of the Uyghur minority.

The move drew fiery opposition from Beijing, which threatened unspecified countermeasures, warning the US would “pay the price for its wrongdoing”.

“Stay tuned,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian told reporters.

“The US attempt to interfere with the Beijing Winter Olympics out of ideological prejudice, based on lies and rumours, will only expose (its) sinister intentions,” Zhao said.

“The Winter Olympics are not a stage for political shows and political manipulation,” he added.

But Washington’s move was broadly welcomed by rights groups and politicians in the US, where President Joe Biden has been under pressure to speak out against Chinese rights abuses.

White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said the administration would send no diplomatic or official representation to the Games given China’s “ongoing genocide and crimes against humanity in Xinjiang and other human rights abuses.”

Sending official representation would signal that the Games were “business as usual,” Psaki said. “And we simply can’t do that.”

The International Olympic Committee called it a “purely political decision for each government, which the IOC in its political neutrality fully respects.”

The announcement “also makes it clear that the Olympic Games and the participation of the athletes are beyond politics and we welcome this,” an IOC spokesperson said.