Several Republican lawmakers on Wednesday urged US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to hold China accountable for its human rights abuses and to tell Beijing that their provocative aggression against Taiwan and India is 'unacceptable'.
Calling the Chinese Communist Party the "worst offender of human rights", Senator Marco Rubio with other colleagues in a letter for Blinken and Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen, said that both Biden and Trump administrations have determined that Beijing's actions against Uyghurs, and other predominantly Muslim ethnic groups, in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR) -- including its system of mass surveillance and internment, denial of individuals' rights to practice their religion peacefully, and use of forced labour, sexual violence, forced abortion, and forced sterilization of women -- constitute genocide and crimes against humanity, according to the letter available on Senator Marco Rubio's website.
The CCP continues denying basic human rights to other groups the regime deems a threat, such as Tibetans, Christians, and Falun Gong practitioners.
The letter further stated that the CCP has already stepped up its aggression in the Indo-Pacific region and beyond.
Recalling Biden Administration's National Security Strategy's terming PRC as the only competitor with the intent to reshape the international order, the letter read, "Indeed, General Secretary Xi Jinping stated in his 20th Party Congress report that the CCP has shown a fighting spirit and a firm determination to never yield to coercive power. As we have seen recently, General Secretary Xi has engaged in unacceptable and provocative behaviour in the Taiwan strait and along the Himalayan border with India."
"Beyond the Indo-Pacific, the CCP has stood up 'police' offices and intelligence collection outposts in the United States, Japan, and throughout Europe to suppress dissidents and keep tabs on those who Beijing deems a threat. It is evident that General Secretary Xi is determined to use coercion and aggression against the US and our allies and partners to achieve his geopolitical goals. Deterring the CCP from achieving these goals, therefore, must be our top priority," it added.
Blinken and Yellen are travelling to China.
Chinese Communist Party General Secretary Xi Jinping has launched a charm offensive as the Biden administration struggles to formulate an adequate strategy to deal with Beijing, the letter read further.
Several Republican lawmakers urged Blinken and Yellen to use this visit to impress the aforementioned points upon the PRC counterparts, as well as convey that the "US will no longer tolerate such abuses against American citizens, American businesses, and American allies."
( With inputs from ANI )
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