China has suspended the renewal of the accreditations of several foreign reporters employed by American media, against a backdrop of sharp Beijing-Washington tensions, the Foreign Correspondents' Club in China (FCCC) lamented on Monday.
The Trump administration unleashed hostilities in 2020 against Chinese media in the United States, in the name of tackling restrictions faced by the foreign press in China.
To read also: Renaud Girard: "The two American strategies of Beijing"
An American policy which provoked retaliatory measures on the part of Beijing.
The two powers have in particular in turn expelled a number of reporters from the other country in recent months.
Main sticking point now: Washington only grants 90-day visas to Chinese journalists on American soil.
"
They filed their requests for an extension very early with the American authorities
," Zhao Lijian, a spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, told a regular press conference on Monday.
"
But the United States has so far not extended the visas of any of them
", he lamented, accusing Washington of making these journalists "
hostages
" of a "
policy of pressure.
".
In retaliation, at least five foreign correspondents from four American media outlets (including the Wall Street Journal, CNN television and the Bloomberg agency) were unable to renew their press cards, the FCCC said.
This document is essential to practice on Chinese soil.
The reporters concerned, not necessarily of American nationality, have instead received official letters serving as press cards, the FCCC said.
These documents allow them to continue living and working in China but “
can be revoked at any time
” which exposes journalists to “
a constant threat of expulsion
”, deplores the organization.
"
All options are on the table,
" warned spokesman Zhao Lijian.
"
If the United States persists in its policy, (...) China will be forced to take necessary and appropriate measures
," he said, implying possible expulsions of American journalists.
The Chinese authorities expelled in the first half of 2020 a record number of 17 foreign journalists by canceling their press cards, according to the FCCC.
Washington had imposed in March a sharp reduction in the number of Chinese allowed to work for the state media of their country in the United States.
Since then, 60 Chinese journalists have been forced to pack their bags, according to Beijing.
