New front: diplomatic US-China war

China’s Foreign Ministry announced Friday that it is revoking the license for the U.S. consulate general in the southwestern Chinese city of Chengdu. The ministry also ordered the consulate general to cease operations, according to an online statement.

“The current situation between China and the U.S. is something the Chinese side does not want to see,” the foreign ministry said in an online Chinese-language statement, according to a CNBC translation. “The responsibility lies entirely with the U.S. side,” the statement added. “We again urge the U.S. side to immediately revoke its relevant wrong decisions, to create necessary conditions for the two countries’ relationship to return to normal.”

The Chengdu consular district covers the controversial autonomous region of Tibet, the municipality of Chongqing, and the provinces of Sichuan, Yunnan and Guizhou, according to the consulate’s website. The announcement comes after the U.S. ordered China to close its consulate in Houston. U.S. State Department spokesperson Morgan Ortagus said the directive to close China’s consulate general in Houston was made to protect American intellectual property and the private information of its citizens. Beijing had condemned the decision and warned of firm countermeasures.

Mainland Chinese stocks led losses in the Asia Pacific region during Friday trade, as U.S.-China tensions hit investor sentiment. The Chengdu consulate, which was established in 1985, is one of five the U.S. has in mainland China, in addition to the embassy in Beijing. About three-fourths of the roughly 200-person Chengdu consulate staff are Chinese, according to the consular website.

China orders U.S. to close consulate in Chengdu, CNBC, Jul 24