Chinese Official Warns UK of Interference Over Providing British Citizenship to Nearly 3 Million Residents

Chinese officials have cautioned the UK government over its interference with Hong Kong amid the new security laws Beijing passed in the city.

International tension

Ambassador Liu Xiaoming said that the UK's decision to provide citizenship to up to three million Hong Kong residents that want to flee the city could be considered as a massive international intervention.

According to BBC, Dominic Raab, the British Foreign Secretary, denied the accusations of the Chinese national.

Those who oppose the new security law that Beijing imposed on Hong Kong say it undermines the city's political freedom and autonomy.

Prominent young pro-democracy activist Joshua Wong previously issued a statement urging and pleading for the world to support Hong Kong and stand in solidarity with the residents in the city.

Liu also expressed his hopes that the UK would reverse its decision of offering Hong Kong residents citizenship in their country. The Chinese national also announced that Beijing would take necessary steps to respond to the UK's move once details became clear.

The ambassador also said that if the UK continued with its decision not to use Huawei, a Chinese tech giant's technology to support its 5G network plans, it would suggest a declining relationship between the country and other Chinese businesses.

Zhao Lijian, the Chinese foreign ministry spokesman, announced that China had the right to take actions against Britain over its alleged support of Hong Kong and its citizens but did not specify the details and consequences of such actions, as reported by Reuters.

Also Read: China Detains Prominent Xi Jinping Critic for Calling Out Communist Party Mismanagement

Violation of previous provisions

The UK has called China's new security law a violation of the 1984 Joint Declaration where the former British colony handed back authority over the city to China but set it in place to ensure that specific freedoms remained, including political freedom and expression.

The British government also said it would provide up to three million Hong Kong residents with a chance to have UK citizenship if they were to flee the city.

When called out by Chinese Ambassador Lu as interfering with China's affairs, Raab said the move was not undermining domestic affairs, but rather, was a questioning of Beijing's commitment to international obligations.

According to Aljazeera, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, although considered a Sinophile, expressed his support of Hong Kong and urged citizens to do the same. The official was behind the controversial decision to prevent Huawei from being involved in the country's development of 5G infrastructure, saying it was a protection from hostile state vendors.

China's new security law also caused libraries in Hong Kong to pull pro-democracy books from their shelves and make them unavailable to the public while they were being "reviewed" for potential violations of the new legislation.

The Education Bureau noted that they are required to manage and monitor the lessons, teaching, and learning materials within the city to ensure that they do not pose a threat to the new law.

The bureau also said that any outdated content or those that may violate the new law's provisions, including subversion, secession, terrorism, and conspiring with foreign forces would have to be removed.