U.S., E.U., Canada, and Britain announce sanctions on China for abuse of Uighurs

The United States, the European Union, Britain and Canada each announced sanctions against China over human-rights abuses in Xinjiang, a coordinated effort aimed at holding Beijing accountable for a years-long campaign against Uighurs and other minority groups in the northwestern Chinese region.

The diplomatic push, announced Monday, came after a tense meeting between U.S. and Chinese officials and amid growing calls for democracies to work together to take on an increasingly authoritarian and assertive Beijing.

The European Union was first to move, saying early Monday that it would punish four Chinese officials and the Xinjiang publicsecurity bureau with travel bans and freeze their assets — its most significant measures since an arms embargo after the 1989 killings in Tiananmen Square.

China quickly responded, leveling similar measures against a long list of its European critics.

Not long after, the United States, Canada and

Britain jumped in. Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced midday that the United States will add two names to its existing Xinjiang sanctions list.

Britain committed for the first time to freeze assets and ban travel for the same Chinese officials as the European Union did, as well as a Xinjiang security body. Canada said it would sanction the same officials and security body as Britain did.

The U.S., British and Canadian statements stressed that the moves were the result of close cooperation. “We stand united with the UK, Canada,

and the EU in promoting accountability for those who abuse human rights,” Blinken wrote in a tweet.

Although the sanctions are largely symbolic, they are sure to complicate ties between China and the rest of the world.

Under President Donald Trump, the United States vowed to take a strong stance on China, but for the most part it did so alone. The Biden administration has stressed the importance of rallying allies to the cause, saying the scale of the challenge requires collective action. Monday’s moves appear to be a step in that direction.

Despite extensive reporting, satellite imagery and witness testimony, Beijing denies human-rights abuses in Xinjiang, claiming that Uighurs and other Turkic Muslims are thriving there.