Posted on 07/22/2020 1:28:50 AM PDT by Zhang Fei
The Chinese Foreign Ministry is vowing to retaliate in a dramatic escalation of tensions after it said the United States had demanded Beijing close its consulate in Houston.
Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said the US made the demand on Tuesday and described the US move as “unprecedented escalation”.
Wang said the Chinese embassy and consulates in the US had received both explosives and death threats recently.
“China demands the US revoke the wrong decision. If the US went ahead, China would take necessary counter measures,” Wang said.
Wang’s disclosure came after Hu Xijin, editor-in-chief of The Global Times, said on Twitter that the US gave 72 hours for China to close the consulate.
“This is a crazy move. The consulate general is the first Chinese CG in the United States. The US has not only asked to close it, but requested evacuation within three days. This is absolute madness. There is apparently no bottom line for some people in Washington. The current US administration is willing to do anything now,” Hu said.
Earlier on Wednesday, US media reported that Houston police and fire officials responded to reports that documents were being burned in the courtyard of the Consulate General of China in Houston on Tuesday night, citing the Houston Police Department.
Houston PD said they began receiving reports that documents were being burned just after 8pm at 3417 Montrose Boulevard where the consulate is located, the click2houston.com reported.
Beijing and Washington are now at odds on almost every front, ranging from engaging in a global blame game over the deadly coronavirus to human rights issues in Hong Kong and Xinjiang. In the past few months, Beijing has expelled a dozen journalists representing US media while Washington has imposed new visa restrictions on Chinese nationals working as journalists in the US.
(Excerpt) Read more at globaltimes.cn ...
Houston is a major oil and gas town and is close to NASA.
Good strategic location for a Chinese spy base.
“ The Consulate General in Houston is the first Chinese consulate general established in the US.”
“ Probably a major spy base.”
Yes. Texas used to be the computer and rocket center of the US.
Future historians will likely look back at THIS EVENT as the tipping point on the run-up to war with China, and to the wider World War IV (or III, whatever you like).
Given how pissed the Chinese are, I guess our country just shut down a huge syping operation.
Burn it down!
Ping
Tell them we’ll close the consulate in Wuhan.
I work down the street from that building. I don't watch the news much, but I did see a story about a fire at the consulate. Turns out the fire was a controlled fire in the which the Chi-coms were burning documents in large barrels.
So what is Beijing going to do, close the US consulate ib Guangdong(Canton)? It isn’t like it is ever open anyway in my experience.
“Turns out the fire was a controlled fire in the which the Chi-coms were burning documents in large barrels.”
Thanks for the report from the ground. That’s what I figured happened - the news reporting was disjointed, and it seemed more focused on a fire-call than on CN espionage.
It’s about time. The ChiComs have been running industrial espionage ops out of that consulate for years.
There’s some footage going around that looks like it was taken from one of the new highrise condos across the street, and it shows that pretty clearly.
[So what is Beijing going to do, close the US consulate ib Guangdong(Canton)? It isn’t like it is ever open anyway in my experience.]
The Houston Medical Center has over 100,000 employees. Some of the most advanced medical research happens in the medical center area, including the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center.
Dumb assholes already gave us the corona virus. What more could they do?
[It’s about time. The ChiComs have been running industrial espionage ops out of that consulate for years.]
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.