Politico | China refuses to commit to closing Houston consulate despite US demand
- Consul general Cai Wei says office is operating normally today and will continue to do so ‘until further notice’
- Official ‘prepared for worst scenario’, but says Beijing has asked US to rescind order
This story is published in a content partnership with POLITICO. It was originally reported by Gavin Bade on politico.com on July 23, 2020.
The head of the Chinese consulate in Houston will not commit to closing the office – a direct threat of defiance to the State Department’s demand that it be shut down by Friday.
In a wide-ranging interview with POLITICO, Cai Wei, the Chinese consul general in Houston, said China is protesting the closure order and his office will remain open “until further notice”.
“Today we are still operating normally, so we will see what will happen tomorrow,” he said, declining to elaborate further.
Cai said Beijing has asked the US to rescind its Tuesday order to close the consulate, which China argues runs afoul of international agreements governing diplomatic relations.
02:23
China calls US order to close Houston consulate ‘political provocation’
“We think that the demand from the US side … is not according to the Vienna convention on consular affairs and also is not according to international practice or [diplomatic] norms, and it violates the China-US consular treaty,” Cai said.