US May Sanction China Over Hong Kong - National Security Adviser

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 25th May, 2020) US National Security Adviser Robert O'Brien hinted on Sunday at a possibility of the US using sanctions against China if Beijing impinges upon Hong Kong's autonomy.

At the annual National People's Congress (NPC) on Friday, China's ruling Communist Party proposed a bill to ban "separatist, subversive and terrorist activities" along with any form of foreign interference in Hong Kong. The NPC is expected to vote on the bill at the end of the annual session, which is likely to wrap up on May 28. This initiative has provoked another wave of protests as some are afraid that the bill would curtail the city's liberties and undermine its special position within China.

"And if that happens, there will be sanctions that will be imposed on Hong Kong and China. It's hard to see how Hong Kong could remain the Asian financial center that it's become if China takes over," O'Brien told NBC's Meet the Press news program.

Violent protests swiped Hong Kong last year, starting in June. Numerous demonstrators took to the streets to protest a proposed extradition bill, but riots continued and became violent even after the unpopular measure was withdrawn in October. Beijing has said that the situation in Hong Kong was the result of foreign interference in China's domestic affairs and expressed full support for the local authorities to avert violence and restore order.