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Protests have erupted in Wuhan, China, over the government’s strict COVID measures in a rare show of defiance, prompting U.S. Senators on Friday to warn Beijing against any violent crackdowns.
In a bipartisan letter to China’s Washington ambassador, Qin Gang, a group 42 Senators warned China that they were “closely” watching Beijing’s response to the unrest and said that any violent crackdown on the protestors would cause “extraordinary damage” to the U.S.-China relationship.
“We caution the CCP in the strongest possible terms not to once again undertake a violent crackdown on peaceful Chinese protesters who simply want more freedom,” the letter penned by Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan and Democratic Sen. Jeff Merkley said.
A person holds a banner during a protest in solidarity over the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) restrictions in mainland China, during a commemoration of the victims of a fire in Urumqi, outside the Chinese consulate in Toronto, Ontario, Canada November 29, 2022.
(REUTERS/Chris Helgren)
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The letter referred to the 1989 Tiananmen Square Massacre, in which thousands of student protestors are believed to have been killed by Chinese authorities.
“If that happens, we believe there will be grave consequences for the U.S.-China relationship, causing extraordinary damage to it,” the lawmakers added.
The letter was fewer than 100 words long but was a direct warning to Beijing just weeks after President Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping met and pledged to bolster relations following years of heightened tension and growing security concerns.
Protesters hold up blank papers and chant slogans as they march in Beijing, Sunday, Nov. 27, 2022.
(AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)
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But the protests across China have once again threatened that relationship after Chinese citizens took to the streets to…
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