 "The number of Chinese students studying in the US increased to 3.20 lakh last year from 2.54 lakh, which Chinese officials ascribed to the country's increasingly unfavorable climate due to worries over the flight of scientific knowledge")
China threatened to take “resolute measures” to protect the interests of its citizens on Monday, accusing the US of forcibly deporting Chinese students without any reasonable justification.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told a media briefing here that the US has been overly expanding the definition of national security and has arbitrarily canceled Chinese students’ visas, prohibited them from visiting the US, and forcibly deported them without any solid proof.
In response to inquiries concerning claims that Chinese scholars and students were detained and compelled to leave the country upon crossing the border at Dallas and Washington Dulles airports, Mao stated that the US actions severely damaged the individuals involved and hampered people-to-people contacts between China and the US.
“The recent cases show that the US law enforcement personnel are bent on making excuses for deporting Chinese personnel. These are typical cases of selective, discriminatory and politically motivated law enforcement,” Mao said.
“China will take resolute measures to safeguard the legitimate and lawful rights and interests of Chinese citizens. The US needs to immediately stop unjustifiably harassing,” she said.
China’s state-run Global Times quoted Chinese Ambassador to the US Xie Feng alleging that dozens of Chinese arriving in the US, including students, were being denied entry every month over the past few months.
He added that they were going back to school after visiting other places or seeing relatives in China, and that they had legal visas and no criminal records.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsHowever, Xie claimed that after they arrived at the airport, they were subjected to an eight-hour interrogation by the authorities, who also forbade them from speaking with their parents, falsely accused them, and even forcibly deported and barred them from entering the country.
Indian students in American schools surpassed Chinese students last year, according to figures from the US Department of Homeland Security.
The number of Chinese students studying in the US increased to 3.20 lakh last year from 2.54 lakh, which Chinese officials ascribed to the country’s increasingly unfavorable climate due to worries over the flight of scientific knowledge.
(With agency inputs)