Under New Rule, Chinese Diplomats Must Notify State Dept. of Meetings in U.S.
The United States has begun requiring Chinese diplomats to notify the State Department ahead of any meetings they plan to have with local or state officials and with educational and research institutions, the State Department said Wednesday.
The move was done in reaction to the Chinese government’s rules for American diplomats in China, a senior State Department official said. American diplomats are generally required to get the permission of Chinese officials in Beijing before they can travel to official meetings in the provinces or to visit institutions, the official said.
The new State Department requirement was still less onerous than that imposed by China. Chinese diplomats are not required to seek permission for the meetings; they only need to notify the State Department of the meetings in advance.
One aim of the new restrictions was to get China to relent on its limits on the actions of American diplomats, the official said, adding that the United States had complained to the Chinese government about the regulations, to no avail.
The new rule applies to officials working at all Chinese missions in the United States and its territories, including the at the United Nations.
The policy of reciprocity is sure to add to the growing tensions between the United States and China. The newest step was described by State Department officials on condition of anonymity.
President Trump started a trade war that has caused economic damage in both countries, and negotiators still have not reached agreement to resolve the dispute, though American officials say the two countries have reached a tentative partial deal.
American officials say the two nations have entered a new era of great power competition, and they are trying to put in place policies to constrain Chinese influence across the globe, which includes limiting its economic, military and technological footprints.
Some American officials have spoken about the need for American universities and research institutions to be more wary of Chinese government efforts to steal research and intellectual property. The F.B.I. has been asking American university officials to monitor students or scholars visiting from certain Chinese state-affiliated research institutions or companies, NPR reported in June. The F.B.I. is focused on researchers in the sciences, technology, engineering and math.
The State Department had informed the Chinese embassy of the new rule, the official said. It had already gotten one notification from Chinese officials under the mandate, the official said, and expects to receive about 50 notifications per week.