US Considering More Punitive Measures Against Hong Kong, Beijing, Pompeo Says

The Trump administration is considering more measures to punish Beijing for interference in Hong Kong, including sanctions outlined in the Hong Kong Autonomy Act, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said. While Pompeo declined to say how far the administration would go to sanction China, he said President Donald Trump wants to ensure Hong Kong is “treated just like mainland China.”

“We will absolutely implement those laws” if they are passed, Pompeo said during a July 1 news conference, referring to the Hong Kong Autonomy Act. The measure would sanction Chinese officials, companies and foreign banks associated with Beijing’s interference in Hong Kong (see 2005260031). The Senate passed it June 25 (see 2006250043).

Pompeo said the U.S. is working to build a “global coalition” to put more pressure on Beijing. “There is more work to do, for sure,” said the secretary, who, along with the Commerce Department, announced bans this week on defense exports to Hong Kong and suspensions of license exceptions for shipments to the region (see 2006290063). Pompeo said the sanctions and export controls are “reversible” if Chinese President Xi Jinping takes steps to return Hong Kong’s autonomy. But Pompeo said that is not likely. “The actions of the last 48 hours suggests that the Chinese government, at least at this point ... has no intention of reversing that trend,” he said.

Pompeo also discussed U.S. attempts to convince the United Nations to extend an arms embargo over Iran, which is set to expire in October. He said the U.S. will not accept a temporary extension of the embargo and threatened snapback sanctions against Iran if the embargo is not extended. “Our objective is not to extend the arms embargo for a short period of time. That's how we got into this mess,” Pompeo said. “Our objective is to make sure that the lifting of that arms embargo is conditions-based.”

Although Pompeo said the U.S. has “full authority” to impose snapback sanctions against Iran (see 2006090047), he said the administration is “hopeful” the embargo will be extended. Other U.N. members said they would support an extension, including the United Kingdom, France and Germany (see 2006220020). “We hope that the U.N. Security Council, the Chinese, the Russians -- every partner there -- will see that it is in their best interest to deny Iran this benefit,” Pompeo said. “We're hopeful that we'll be able to do this without having to go through a complex, difficult process at the U.N.”