Calling 69-year-old Chinese President Xi Jinping “weak” for stifling dissent in China over Covid-19 lockdowns, 59-year-old Secretary of State Antony Blinken continues to destroy U.S.-Chinese relations. Under 80-year-old President Joe Biden’s leadership, China and the U.S. have come closer to war since the 1949 Maoist Revolution. Biden officials have accused China of various human rights abuses, including genocide against the Muslim Uyghurs along China’s Silk Road in Western China. Recent protests erupted in Chinese cities over the government’s zero Covid policy, requiring lockdown everywhere in China where viral outbreaks take place. Xi’s zero tolerance saved potentially millions of lives, where China ranks among the lowest Covid death toll. Yet when Chinese citizens took to the streets protesting, Blinken couldn’t control his mouth.
Speaking on left-leaning MSNBC Nov. 30, Blinken said it was “a sign of weakness” for Xi to crack down on street protesters, demanding that the government end its lockdowns with its zero Covid-policy. When U.S. streets turned into riots, looting and arson in the Summer of 2020 following the death of George Floyd, Xi didn’t condemn U.S. authorities for trying to control the mayhem. Yet when violent street demonstrations break out in China, the Secretary of State condemns the Communist government as “weak.” “I think any country where you see people trying to speak out, trying to speak up to protest peacefully, to make know their frustrations, whatever the issues is—in any country where we see that happening and then we see the government take massive, massive repressive action to stop it, that’s no sign of strength,” Blinken said. “It’s a sign of weakness.”
Blinken has been known for his abrasive rhetoric toward Russia and China, wrecking U.S. diplomatic relations. At his first meeting with China in Anchorage, Alaska March 18, 2021, Blinken accused Beijing of genocide against Muslim Uyghurs. Since then, things have gone from bad to worse, with 82-year-old House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) formally visiting Taiwan, the Republic of China [ROC]. Street protests erupted in Chinese cities when a high-rise apartment building near Shanhai caught fire with first responders unable to save 10 residents. Protesters claimed that extreme Covid lock downs prevented firemen from responding more quickly. Xi promised his Health Minister would reconsider current Covid lock down policies, to end them as quickly as possible to assure first responders get to emergencies. Blinken suggested that Xi’s standing with the Chinese Communist Party changed.
Blinken knows that Xi was just voted in for another sic-year term, essentially Chinese premier for life. “China has to figure out a way forward on dealing with COVID, a way forward that answers the health needs, but also answers the needs of the people,” Blinken said. “We can’t address that for them,” implying that the U.S. government stands with street protesters seeking to express grievances to the government. Nothing antagonizes the Chinese Communist Party than the U.S. trying to create revolution in China. When the 1989 pro-democracy protests at Tiananmen Square were met with Chinese tanks, U.S. officials did everything to condemn China’s crack down. U.S. officials backed pro-democracy street protests in Hong Kong June 30, 2020 before Mainland Chinese officials cracked down. Blinken’s support of street demonstrators infuriates the Communist Party.
When comparing over 1.2 million Covid deaths in the United States, China only reports 323,686 deaths, attesting to the government’s zero Covid policy, requiring lockdowns anywhere infections rise in China. Protests in Guangzhou, Shanghai and Beijing prompted Chinese authorities to crack down with force. Blinken thinks he can dictate what China does to maintain law-and-order, when street protesters starting calling for the end of Xi’s regime. China sees infiltration of zero-tolerance Covid policy with foreign pro-democracy groups that have bigger plans to end Chinese Communist rule. U.S. officials like Blinken see parallels to the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests where thousands of street protesters lost their lives to the Communist Party’s show of force. Western press reports indicated that Chinese police have conducted stop-and-search checks looking at protesters’ cell phones.
Blinken doesn’t help the abysmal state of U.S.-Chinese relations for condemning the Communist government for cracking down on zero-tolerance protesters. Using the current situation a Tiananmen Square 2.0 shows Beijing that the U.S. doesn’t hesitate to meddle in China’s internal affairs. Like Taiwan and Hong Kong, Blinken has ripped the Chinese Communist Party for maintaining law-and-order, accusing Beijing of human and civil rights abuses. Biden and his national security team, including 45-year-old Jake Sullivan, have done everything possible to offend the Chinese Communist Party. Accusing China of genocide and other human rights abuses does nothing to put diplomacy relations on a solid footing. Once Biden said Sept 23 that he would defend Taiwan with U.S. troops, Xi accused the White House of violating the 1979 Taiwan Relations Act. Blinken’s remarks only make things worse.
About the Author
John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He’s editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.
