China warns US not to boycott Beijing Olympics

U.S. politicians should stop calling for a diplomatic boycott of the Beijing Winter Olympics to avoid hurting bilateral ties and China will take countermeasures if necessary, China’s foreign ministry said on Monday.

The Biden administration is expected to announce this week that U.S. government officials will not attend the 2022 Olympics in Beijing, CNN reported on Sunday. Those calling for a boycott are grandstanding and should stop so as not to affect the dialogue and cooperation between China and the United States in important areas, said Zhao Lijian, China’s foreign ministry spokesman.

If the U.S. insists in wilfully clinging to its course, China will take resolute countermeasures, he said at a news conference. U.S. President Joe Biden said last month that he was considering such a diplomatic boycott to protest China’s human rights record, including what Washington says is genocide against minority Muslims. The administration has been under pressure from activists and members of Congress to skip the games.

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