Pressure builds on China as US slaps sanctions on Lam
Latest move is aimed at punishing Beijing for undermining Hong Kong’s autonomy
WASHINGTON/BEIJING: The United States on Friday imposed sanctions on Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam, the territory’s current and former police chiefs and eight other officials for their role in curtailing political freedoms in the territory.
The sanctions were imposed under an executive order US President Donald Trump signed last month to punish China for its moves against dissent in Hong Kong and are the latest action by his administration against Beijing in the run-up to his November re-election bid.
The sanctions freeze any US asset of the officials and generally bar Americans from doing business with them.
As well as Lam, the sanctions target Hong Kong police commissioner Chris Tang and his predecessor Stephen Lo; John Lee Ka Chiu, Hong Kong’s secretary of security, and Teresa Cheng, the justice secretary, the US treasury department said in a statement.
It said Beijing’s imposition of draconian national security legislation had undermined Hong Kong’s autonomy.
“Carrie Lam is the chief executive directly responsible for implementing Beijing’s policies of suppression of freedom and democratic processes,” the statement said.
Tensions between the United States and China have been increasing daily. China’s foreign ministry said on Friday it firmly opposes executive orders that Trump announced this week to ban US transactions with the Chinese owners of the Wechat and Tiktok apps.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson, Wang Wenbin, said, “The US will taste the bitter fruit of choosing self-interest over market principles.”
Also on Friday, a Chinese court sentenced a Canadian citizen to death on drug-related charges, the second Canadian to receive the death penalty in as many days.