White House Slaps Retaliatory “Foreign Mission” Restrictions On More Chinese Media Outlets

Just hours after the US announced plans to bar Chinese airlines from flying passenger routes to the US, while Reuters reminds us that the restrictions on 33 Chinese AI and security firms who aid China’s security state and imprisonment of ethnic minorities will take effect on June 5.

• U.S. TO DESIGNATE ADDITIONAL CHINESE MEDIA OUTLETS AS FOREIGN MISSIONS AS SOON AS THURSDAY – RTRS

Earlier this year, Beijing announced plans to kick out dozens of foreign journalists working for American media organizations, amid a broader crackdown on transparency in the aftermath of the coronavirus outbreak. They included reporters for WSJ, NYT, Bloomberg and other organizations.

In response, President Trump designated 5 Chinese state media outlets “foreign missions”, meaning they much register all personnel and property with the US government.

Institutions with this designation effectively now have to comply with all rules governing foreign embassies and consulates. The outlets added in February include Xinhua News Agency, China Global Television Network (or CCTV), China Radio International, the parent company of China Daily newspaper, and the parent company of the The People’s Daily newspaper.

It also means that during a diplomatic spat, the US could expel these media outlets, just like Beijing is doing to the American journalists. Some have even claimed it’s likely a preamble for such a move. it’s not clear how many new media outlets will be targeted.