The European Union wants to punish China for violating the human rights of the Uyghur Muslim minority in the Xinjiang region, US newspaper reports The Wall Street Journal Thursday from Brussels.
It is the first time that the EU has imposed sanctions on the communist regime since an uprising in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square was bloody down in 1989.
The EU would like to blacklist four officials and a so-called entity, diplomats have informed. One of the sanctions is a travel ban for those involved. They also cannot access their assets in the EU member states. The Chinese are on a list that also includes human rights violators from Russia, North Korea and Africa.
Some European governments and the United States have labeled Beijing’s actions in Xinjiang as genocide. The House of Representatives did the same two weeks ago. The genocide will also be discussed next week in Alaska during the first meeting between the new US secretary of state and defense and a Chinese delegation.
The decision to impose European sanctions was taken after lengthy negotiations, according to the newspaper. The drawn-out talks made it clear once again that within the EU bloc, opinions differ on how to deal with Beijing, said The Wall Street Journal. The measures have yet to be approved, which is expected to happen when EU foreign ministers meet later this month.
– .
