The Limited Times

Now you can see non-English news...

US considering boycott of Winter Olympics

2021-11-18T22:09:43.684Z


In protest against human rights violations in China, US President Biden is considering a diplomatic boycott of the Olympic Winter Games in Beijing. The opening ceremony could therefore take place without a US delegation.


Enlarge image

US President Joe Biden (r.) With Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau

Photo:

Evan Vucci / AP

The US is considering a diplomatic boycott of the Olympic Games in China next year.

When asked by a journalist, US President Joe Biden said in Washington on Thursday that this was "something we are considering."

It was not more specific.

Biden spoke out at a meeting with Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at the White House.

When asked on Thursday, the US government headquarters did not elaborate on what a diplomatic boycott might look like.

It should mean that unlike usual, no government representatives travel to the Olympic Games.

The participation of US athletes should remain unaffected.

The White House left details of such a step open.

The Winter Olympics will take place in China from February 4th to 20th, 2022.

The authoritarian-ruled country is accused of human rights violations, especially against minorities such as the Muslim Uyghurs.

Human rights groups cite the Xinjiang, Tibet and Hong Kong autonomous regions as examples of Chinese reprisals.

Again and again, boycott calls for the winter games there are loud.

more on the subject

  • Video summit with Joe Biden and Xi Jinping: After all, they talked to each other by Bernhard Zand, Hong Kong

  • Virtual meeting: what Joe Biden and Xi Jinping talk about

  • Conflict with the USA: Xi Jinping warns of confrontation like in the Cold War

  • Winter Games 2022: Olympic flame ignited for Beijing - Tibet protests disrupt ceremony

  • Olympia 2022: Winter Games in Beijing only with spectators from China

Several hardliners Republican are calling on Biden to fully boycott the Winter Olympics to protest even more.

Other Republican MPs and numerous Democrats, on the other hand, are in favor of the diplomatic boycott.

They include the Chairwoman of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi.

There is great political tension between the USA and China because of the human rights situation, but also because of various other controversial issues.

Biden and China's head of state Xi Jinping had discussed the relationship between their countries at an online summit just a few days ago and warned of a dangerous confrontation.

White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said Thursday that a possible boycott of the Olympic Games was not an issue during the conversation.

nck / dpa

Source: spiegel

All news articles on 2021-11-18

You may like

News/Politics 2024-03-27T18:54:39.523Z

Trends 24h

Latest

© Communities 2019 - Privacy

The information on this site is from external sources that are not under our control.
The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them.