US Govt. Impose Visa Restriction On Chinese Citizens

U.S. President Trump's government has issued rules to restrict travel to the US by members of China's ruling Communist Party and their families.

The State Department said that it would deny visas to Chinese citizens linked to overseas influence operations involving violence.

It was the latest step against what Washington calls Chinese influence operations in the US and comes less than two months before President-elect Joe Biden is due to take office.

The United Front has been involved in efforts to put pressure on people outside China’s borders who raise concerns about human rights abuses in the Uighur region, Tibet, and elsewhere.

Secretary of State said the restrictions would apply to Chinese Communist Party officials or anyone else taking part in such propaganda or influence campaigns affiliated with the United Front Work Department.

China responded to those restrictions by accusing the U.S. government of “an escalation of political suppression.”

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said Thursday that the travel restrictions were “totally inconsistent with the U.S.’s own interests” and would damage America’s global image.

It wasn’t clear how many people would potentially be covered by the new restrictions.

The move comes the same week that the U.S. announced plans to place new time limits on visas for members of the Chinese Communist Party and their families, cutting the time that the travel documents are valid from 10 years to one month.