US and China is on Dangerous Turn

In retaliation for the closure of the Chinese Consulate in Houston, China has ordered the closure of the US Consulate in Chengdu, Sichuan Province. Beijing said in a statement on Friday that it had decided to give the United States a "worthy response". Earlier in the day, the US administration charged four Chinese nationals with visa fraud. They claim that despite being members of the Chinese military, they have hidden information. Three of them have also been arrested. This reciprocal move has raised tensions between the two countries to dangerous levels, reminiscent of the situation during the Self-War.

Tensions between China and the United States, the world's two largest economies, have been simmering for some time. That situation took a serious turn last Wednesday. On that day, the US administration ordered the closure of the Chinese consulate in Houston, California. The move comes a day after the US Justice Department filed charges against four Chinese nationals for allegedly hacking into the data of hundreds of US private companies and attempting to steal coronavirus vaccine research data.

This is not the end of the US blow against China. John C. Demers, a lawyer for the U.S. Department of Justice, said in a press release on Thursday that the four Chinese researchers accused of visa fraud had lied about being associated with China's People's Liberation Army (PLA). Three of them have been arrested. Another has taken refuge at the Chinese Consulate in San Francisco. The FBI is trying to arrest him. He added in the statement that PLA members came to the United States on research visas anonymously. The Chinese government plans to send troops to the United States to steal important research data.

However, China has dismissed the move as a "political provocation" by the United States. The Chinese Foreign Ministry said in a statement yesterday that it had ordered the closure of the Chengdu Consulate only to give a legitimate and appropriate response to the US's unreasonable actions. China is not responsible for the current relationship between China and the United States, the entire responsibility lies with the United States. However, the ministry did not give a deadline for the termination of all activities.

In addition to the embassy in Beijing, the United States has five consulates in mainland China and one consulate in Hong Kong. Founded in 1965, the consulate in Chengdu has been at the center of controversy in the past. In 2013, fugitive U.S. intelligence analyst Edward Snowden revealed that US embassies and consulates around the world have espionage networks. There was also the name of Chengdu Consulate.

The United States is uneasy about trade issues, China's human rights abuses, and Beijing's growing military presence in the South China Sea. The new national security law came into force in Hong Kong recently, and the two countries' relations began to deteriorate further, accusing the Chinese administration of negligence in curbing the early coronavirus outbreak. During a visit to London on Tuesday, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo spoke of building an international alliance against China. On the same day, Pompeo also referred to the Chinese consulate in Houston as a center for espionage and intellectual property theft. However, Beijing calls it a "malicious slander." Wants to keep relations with the United States normal. In a statement yesterday, China called on Washington to restore normalcy. But while US-China relations have reached dangerous levels, many analysts say