US orders China to shut Houston consulate in 3 days over espionage

The United States has told China to close its consulate in Houston in a dramatic worsening of ties between the world’s two biggest economies, and a source said Beijing was considering shutting the US consulate in Wuhan in retaliation.

Washington “abruptly demanded” closure of the Houston consulate on Tuesday, China’s foreign ministry said, calling the move an “unprecedented escalation.” The editor of an official Chinese media outlet said China had been given 72 hours to do so.

The State Department confirmed the decision and said the move was made “to protect American intellectual property and Americans’ private information.”

Beijing condemned the order and threatened retaliation, but did not say what measures it might take.

Speaking on a visit to Denmark, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo offered no specifics, but repeated accusations about Chinese theft of US and European intellectual property, which he said were costing “hundreds of thousands of jobs.” “President Trump has said enough — we are not going to allow this to continue to happen,” he told a news conference. “We are setting out clear expectations for how the Chinese Communist Party is going to behave. And when they don’t, we are going to take action to protect the American people, protect our national security and also protect our economy and jobs. That’s the actions that you’re seeing taken by President Trump, we’ll continue to engage in this,” Pompeo said. 

Ties between the United States and China have worsened sharply this year over a range of issues, from the coronavirus and telecoms gear maker Huawei to China’s territorial claims in the South China Sea and its imposition of a new security law on the former British colony of Hong Kong.

The deterioration comes in the run-up to the November US presidential election, in which President Donald Trump and his Democratic rival, Joe Biden, have appeared to compete over who can look tougher in response to China.