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A Chinese security officer walks past the covered sign of the now-closed US consulate in Chengdu. Photo: Simon Song

China takes over US consulate at Chengdu in tit-for-tat retaliation for Houston

  • Foreign ministry says closure is a ‘just and necessary response’ and confirms Chinese officials entered compound immediately
  • American embassy in Beijing says goodbye to southwestern diplomatic outpost on social media

China on Monday took over the US consulate in Chengdu after ordering the facility to close in a tit-for-tat battle following last week’s forced closure of the Chinese consulate in Houston.

Several Chinese officials in white shirts and masks arrived in a minibus at 10am and went in through the front entrance to take over the compound, according to videos from a local television network.

Meanwhile, the US embassy in Beijing posted a farewell to the Chengdu facility on China’s Twitter-like Weibo. “Today, we say goodbye to the US consulate in Chengdu. We will miss you forever,” it said.

Thousands gather to see closure of US consulate in Chengdu

Beijing's decision to close to US consulate in Chengdu was a “just and necessary response” to the closure by the US of China’s consulate in Houston, said foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin, who also confirmed that Chinese authorities had entered the compound on Monday morning as it closed.

“China’s decision to close the US's consulate in Chengdu and to take it over is a just and necessary response to the US's closing of China's consulate in Houston and forcefully entering the premises,” Wang said during a regular press briefing in Beijing on Monday afternoon.

“The current situation between China and the US is something we don't want to see, and the responsibility lies only on the US.”

Earlier, Hu Xijin, editor-in-chief of the nationalistic tabloid Global Times, said the US’s withdrawal and closure of the Chengdu consulate complied with China’s requirements, and the takeover was civilised.

Hu also wrote that some Chinese employees of the consulate were not properly compensated as they had been dismissed and negotiations were underway with the US side for a settlement.

China’s decision to close US consulate in Chengdu ‘driven by size’, observers say

Several side streets, as well as a main road leading to the consulate were blocked in the morning, with dozens of policemen guarding the intersections. At around 6.20am, the US national flag was lowered from the flagpole inside the compound for the last time.

There was no sign of movement at the compound until shortly before 11am when several cars, an ambulance, a bus and dozens of Chinese workers were seen leaving, as people lingered nearby.

Road blocks to the consulate were removed at around 12.30 pm. The consulate’s nameplate and the US national emblem outside were covered by cloths.

01:27

US consulate in Chengdu shut down in response to closure of China’s diplomatic mission in Houston

US consulate in Chengdu shut down in response to closure of China’s diplomatic mission in Houston

Crowds of people had gathered near the consulate, which is surrounded by community compounds and commercial buildings. Many were taking photos of blocked roads and the assembled people, while two of the several police officers guarding the roads patrolled nearby.

Ellen Hu, a 30-year-old Chengdu resident among the crowd, said her office opened at 9.30am, but she had decided to wait until 10am to see the closure of the consulate. “To witness the closure is more important,” she said. “It only happens once in decades.”

Late on Sunday night, three semi-trucks and a crane truck entered the compound, guided by a handful of workers standing near the gate.

The consulate, which opened in 1985, has almost 200 staff, including about 150 locally hired employees, according to its website.

Police block the area around the US consulate in Chengdu early on Monday morning ahead of the closure. Photo: Simon Song

There was a festive atmosphere outside the building almost as soon as the closure was announced on Friday. People gathered to take selfies, photos and videos, with some travelling from across China to witness the historic event.

Sales doubled at an ice jelly stall opposite the consulate, according to one of its employees, surnamed Tang. “I can sell about 300 bowls of ice jelly now,” she said. “People have even flown from Xian [in the northwest] or Hainan [China’s southernmost island] to be part of this event.”

One ice jelly customer, Xu Junqing, 60, from the northern province of Hebei, said he had been visiting his son in Chengdu last week and had come to the consulate on Saturday and Sunday. “I think most people are just curious. But I think it will reopen again, because if China and the US stop cooperation, there’s no good to the whole world.”

03:08

China orders US consulate in Chengdu to close in tit-for-tat response to Washington

China orders US consulate in Chengdu to close in tit-for-tat response to Washington

Jolin Wang, a 26-year-old employee at a Chengdu education institute, said she had been at the consulate each day since Friday’s announcement, armed with an umbrella and a telescope. “It’s a matter of international concern and it just happened near me, so I want to know every step of the process.”

Wang said she planned to return to the consulate on Monday afternoon to see if Chinese officials would enter the compound, in the same way US officials had done at China’s diplomatic office in Houston.

The tit-for-tat consulate closures have accelerated a sharp deterioration in relations between the two countries, but experts said their relationships could worsen further.

The US national flag is lowered from its Chengdu consulate for the last time early on Monday morning. Photo: Simon Song
Shi Yinhong, a professor of international relations at Renmin University, said the possibility could not be ruled out that the US would act against China’s consulate in San Francisco where a Chinese researcher – alleged to belong to the People’s Liberation Army – had been in hiding, according to American authorities. She was arrested and booked at the Sacramento County Jail early on Friday morning.

“The US has made up its mind to deal with China in all aspects,” Shi said. “So in the following six months, until the new president moves into the White House, the possibility of further law enforcement against China, including on infiltration and intelligence activities, cannot be underestimated.”

Shen Dingli, a professor at the Institute of International Studies at Fudan University, said China-US relations would keep deteriorating and the US presidential election would accelerate the downward spiral.

“The two countries are having a deep decoupling and it’s even possible for them to break diplomatic relations,” he said. “It was impossible before because of globalisation but now the two countries are dramatically distancing from each other.”

Additional reporting by Jun Mai

This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: China takes over US consulate after ordering it closed
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