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US-China tensions expected to escalate further after Donald Trump promises action over Hong Kong
- Relations between the two sides are likely to carry on worsening after the US President said he would end the city’s preferential status after Beijing ‘smothered its freedom’
- Observers predict spiral of retaliation will continue and question whether trade negotiations will be able to carry on
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China and the US have little room to defuse tensions after Washington announced it would end Hong Kong’s special status, observers believe.
On Friday Donald Trump announced he would move to end agreements that gave the city preferential treatment over trade and travel and said he would sanction officials responsible for “absolutely smothering Hong Kong’s freedom”.
The move came after China’s national legislature approved for a national security law in the former British colony, in what critics described as an abandonment of the “one country, two systems” model of semi-autonomy.
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Beijing has said it will respond to the latest US move, but has refrained from hitting back immediately, while state media coverage has remained relatively low key.
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Donald Trump announces US will revoke Hong Kong’s special status
Donald Trump announces US will revoke Hong Kong’s special status
But observers believe that the tensions between the two sides are likely to escalate further given their competing interests across the globe in areas such as trade, technology and ideology.
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