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Flag lowered at US consulate in Chengdu as China takes control Flag lowered at US consulate in Chengdu as China takes control
(about 7 hours later)
Area locked down on Monday ahead of official 10am handover, a day after crowds gathered to watch US officials prepare to leave Troops posted outside building as Chinese authorities take over diplomatic mission
The US flag has been lowered at the US consulate in Chengdu, before the Chinese foreign ministry announced the diplomatic outpost was officially closed at 10am. Chinese authorities have taken over the US consulate general in Chengdu, marking the diplomatic mission’s official closure and a new low point in ties between the world’s largest economies.
China on Friday ordered the closure in response to Washington’s order for the Chinese consulate in Houston to be shut. At dawn on Monday, the American flag outside the consulate was lowered while police held back crowds that had gathered over the weekend to watch. At 10am, the mission was closed, according to China’s foreign ministry.
Police in Chengdu restricted access to the area around the consulate on Monday morning, and four officials in personal protective gear could be seen walking towards the consulate at about 10:24am local time. Chinese soldiers took up their posts outside the consulate, while teams of workers in hazmat suits and Chinese officials dressed in white short-sleeved dress shirts and black briefcases entered the mission. Workers draped grey clothes over signs bearing the consulate’s name.
“Chinese authorities entered through the front entrance and took it over,” the foreign ministry said in a statement. “Competent Chinese authorities entered through the front entrance and took it over,” the foreign ministry said.
Local residents in Chengdu flocked to the consulate on Sunday, taking selfies and waving Chinese flags, as officials prepared to remove its official plaque. On Friday, China had ordered the closure in response to Washington’s order for the Chinese consulate in Houston to be shut, blaming the deterioration of US-China ties on Washington and urging the US to withdraw its decision.
A constant stream of onlookers in the city of 16.5 million people flowed past the consulate, many taking photos. Since Friday, residents have crowded the streets around the consulate, taking photos and waving Chinese flags as staff were ferried out of the compound. At least one lit firecrackers and another draped a huge Chinese flag from a balcony and shouted “China!” into the street. On Sunday, a worker hammered away at a plaque on the building’s wall for 20 minutes before leaving it.
Tensions between the two countries over trade and the coronavirus rose another notch last week when on Tuesday the US ordered China’s consulate in Texas closed, saying it was a hub of espionage and intellectual property theft. On Monday, the closure was covered extensively by Chinese state media, with videos and photos from the scene. A graphic posted on Weibo by the People’s Daily transposed the Chinese characters “close” and “America”. Under the consulate’s latest post on Weibo, hundreds of users left jeering comments. “Pack up your stuff and get lost, Yankees,” said one. Another said: “For every ‘like,’ an American dies.”
Large numbers of police kept people in Chengdu from getting too close and put a quick stop to any provocative gestures or obvious signs of joy as the Americans left. Tensions between the two countries over trade and the coronavirus reached a new level last week when on Tuesday the US ordered China’s consulate in Texas closed, accusing Beijing of using it as a hub of espionage and intellectual property theft.
One passerby launched into a nationalist chant and was quickly silenced, according to a video posted on social media. AFP journalists saw security confiscate a banner. The measures however didn’t stop one person draping a huge Chinese flag from his balcony and shouting “China” into the street. The targeting of diplomatic missions comes after retaliatory measures against journalists from both countries as well as sanctions on officials and trade as US-China frictions deepen over a range of issues from Huawei and human rights violations in Xinjiang, to Beijing’s claims in the South China Sea.
Boos also went up when a bus with tinted windows left the building on Sunday. The scene outside the Chengdu consulate over the weekend turned into a celebration of nationalism. Boos went up from the crowd when a bus with tinted windows left the consulate on Sunday. A video posted on social media showed one passerby launch into a nationalist chant before being silenced. Police were also seen confiscating a banner.
An attempt to pry the main plaque from the wall of the shuttered consulate with a crowbar, hammer and chisel, failed. While residents most appeared jubilant, one bystander tearily told a reporter: “America and China should be friends.”
Beijing had not given a date for the consulate’s closure, but on Saturday most of the insignia were stripped from the building. The US mission in China posted a video on Twitter of footage of the consulate’s history, since its opening in 1985 by then vice-president George HW Bush, with the message: “Today, we bid farewell to the US consulate general in Chengdu. We will forever miss you.”
The US has an embassy in Beijing as well as five consulates in mainland China – including the one in Chengdu – plus one in Hong Kong. The US has an embassy in Beijing as well as five consulates in mainland China – including the one in Chengdu – plus one in Hong Kong. The Chengdu consulate covered the country’s south-west, including – notably – Tibet, where authorities have overseen a severe crackdown. China’s foreign ministry has called the closure a “legitimate and necessary response to the unreasonable measures by the United States”.
The Chengdu consulate covered the country’s south-west, including – notably – Tibet. Many Tibetans accuse the central government of religious repression and eroding their culture. In 2013, China demanded a US explanation after news reports said a top-secret map leaked by fugitive intelligence analyst Edward Snowden showed surveillance facilities at US embassies and consulates worldwide – including the mission in Chengdu.
Shutting down the consulate, China’s foreign ministry said on Friday, was a “legitimate and necessary response to the unreasonable measures by the United States”. Chinese nationalists have called for a more strident response from the authorities, such as the closure of the US consulate in Hong Kong, a move that would raise tensions further. The semi-autonomous city saw large, rolling pro-democracy protests last year and Beijing has frequently said it suspects the US of being behind the unrest.
“Some personnel at the US consulate in Chengdu were engaged in activities outside of their capacity, interfered in China’s internal affairs, and endangered China’s security and interests,” spokesman Wang Wenbin said. The US secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, said on Thursday the Chinese consulate in Houston was a “hub of spying and intellectual property theft”. The fourth-largest city in the US, Houston is a major global centre for medical and biological research.
In 2013, China demanded a US explanation after news reports said a top-secret map leaked by fugitive intelligence analyst Edward Snowden showed surveillance facilities at US embassies and consulates worldwide – including at Chengdu.
Chinese nationalists had called for a more strident response from the authorities, such as the closure of the US consulate in Hong Kong, a move that would raise tensions further. The semi-autonomous city saw large, rolling pro-democracy protests last year and Beijing has frequently said it suspects the US of being behind the unrest.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Thursday the Chinese consulate in Houston was a “hub of spying and intellectual property theft”. The fourth-largest city in the US, Houston is a major global centre for medical and biological research.
Washington officials said attempts to steal secrets in those fields had grown too numerous to ignore.Washington officials said attempts to steal secrets in those fields had grown too numerous to ignore.
Agence France-Presse contributed to this reportAgence France-Presse contributed to this report