Some have also made a case for a possible postponement or relocation of the event scheduled for next February.

The US Commission on International Religious Freedom in an annual report encouraged Washington to continue to impose targeted financial and visa sanctions on Chinese government agencies and officials responsible for “systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations”.

It also recommended that the US government “publicly express concerns about Beijing hosting the 2022 Winter Olympic Games and state that US government officials will not attend the games if the Chinese government’s crackdown on religious freedom continues”.

Activists and UN rights experts say at least a million Muslims have been detained in camps in China’s Xinjiang region.

They, and some Western politicians, accuse China of using torture, forced labour and sterilisations, and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken upheld an earlier Trump administration determination that the abuses constituted genocide.

China has repeatedly denied all accusations of abuse and says its camps offer vocational training and are needed to fight extremism.

US senators propose more programmes to help competition with China

Soon after the commission’s report was published, Republican Senator Mitt Romney introduced an amendment to legislation to counter China that would implement a US diplomatic boycott of the Beijing Games, saying it was “jarring and outrageous” that a country would be allowed to host an Olympic Games while committing genocide.

“The amendment calls for a diplomatic boycott, such that we will not be sending any diplomats to participate in the Olympic experience there,” Romney told a Senate hearing, adding that young American athletes should still be allowed to fulfil their dream of competing in the Games. Romney headed the organising committee for the 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake City.

After weeks of negotiations between Democrats and Republicans, a Senate committee on Wednesday overwhelmingly backed the broader bill pressing Beijing on human rights and economic competition.

State Department spokesman Ned Price told a news briefing that the department considered the commission’s conclusions, but that it was an independent federal body that did not clear its report with any government agency or department.

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China turns iconic aquatics centre Water Cube into ‘Ice Cube’ for Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics

China turns iconic aquatics centre Water Cube into ‘Ice Cube’ for Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics

“Obviously, we take their report into account as we take a look at our determinations when it comes to religious freedom designations that I expect we’ll be speaking to later this year,” Price said.

Earlier this month, White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said the United States had not discussed a joint boycott with allies and partners.

A National Security Council spokeswoman said on Wednesday that there had been no change in the administration’s stance on the issue.

Too early to talk about boycotting China’s Winter Olympics: Blinken

Nury Turkel, a Uygur-American activist and a member of the commission, said he was disappointed the idea of a diplomatic boycott was still a matter for debate.

“It will be political suicide, I would think, for any politician with a right mind and a decent political stance to attend this because of the ongoing genocide,” Turkel said.

In March, the Chinese government sanctioned Gayle Manchin and Tony Perkins, the chair and vice-chair of the commission, over the panel’s earlier recommendations that the US government and its partners sanction Chinese officials for abuses in Xinjiang.

Manchin has said she was “flattered” to be targeted by Beijing’s sanctions.