US Considering Diplomatic Boycott Of Beijing Winter Olympics , Says Biden
The move is aimed at expressing displeasure over China's human rights record in Washington says is genocide against minority Muslims
New Delhi: In a protest against China’s human rights record, the United States is considering a diplomatic boycott of the Beijing Olympics, US President Joe Biden confirmed on Thursday. The move is aimed at expressing displeasure over China's human rights record in Washington says is genocide against minority Muslims.
"Something we're considering," Biden said when asked if a diplomatic boycott was under consideration as he sat down for a meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
What does it means?
A diplomatic boycott of the games would mean that US officials would not attend the opening of the Beijing Winter Olympics in February. The decision of not sending the officials to Beijing would mean a rebuke of Chinese President Xi Jinping just days after Xi and Biden’s had first extensive talks over a virtual meeting since Biden took office in January.
A growing number of activists and members of Congress from both parties have made efforts to ensure that the Biden administration diplomatically boycott the event since the US has accused China of carrying out genocide against Muslim ethnic groups in its western Xinjiang region, something that Beijing denies.
White House officials said that the issue was not raised during the Biden-Xi virtual summit.
In a press briefing on Thursday, White House spokesperson Jen Psaki said that US consideration of a diplomatic boycott of the Winter Olympics was driven by concerns about human rights practices in Xinjiang province.
"There are areas that we do have concerns: human rights abuses," Psaki told reporters. "We have serious concerns."
"Certainly there are a range of factors as we look at what our presence would be," she said, while declining to provide a timeline for a decision.
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