GLOBAL:
- The United States has ordered China to close its Houston consulate. The Trump Administration has already ramped up pressure on China on a wide range of issues: imposing sanctions on Chinese officials over policies in Tibet and Xinjiang; downgraded relations with Hong Kong after China implemented a new security law; and declaring Beijing’s pursuit of territory and resources in the South China Sea as illegal.
- China orders US to close Chengdu consulate, in retaliation for the closure of China’s Houston consulate. The tit-for-tat consulate closures marked yet another round of rising tensions between Washington and Beijing.
SOURCES: ASIA TIMES–SPUTNIK–NEW YORK TIMES – DW https://asiatimes.com/2020/07/us-orders-china-to-close-its-houston-consulate/
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/24/world/asia/china-us-consulate-chengdu.html
https://www.dw.com/en/china-orders-us-to-close-chengdu-consulate-as-spying-spat-worsens/a-54302410
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