Beijing:China has warned the US that it will retaliate strongly to the US Lower House passing the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act, which seeks to subject the former British colony's special status to Washington's scrutiny.
"China will definitely take strong counter measures in response to the wrong decisions by the US to defend its sovereignty, security and development interests," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang said in a statement published on its website, reported, media reported.
In this regard, Beijing expressed its opposition and outrage to the US House of Representatives passing the draft law, and urged Washington "to come to a clear assessment of the situation" and "stop meddling in Hong Kong affairs and China's internal affairs before falling off the edge of the cliff."
According to Beijing, "the current situation in Hong Kong has nothing to do with human rights or democracy. The real issue is to promptly end violence, restore order and safeguard the rule of law."
China considers that the approval of the draft law "fully exposes the shocking hypocrisy of some in the US on human rights and democracy and their malicious intention to undermine Hong Kong's prosperity and stability to contain China's development."
The approved draft envisages that both the departments of State and Commerce inform the US Congress annually as to whether Hong Kong is sufficiently autonomous from China to deserve its special treatment from the US while assessing whether Beijing has eroded basic freedoms and the rule of law in the former colony.