Editorial | Anti-sanctions law levels playing field, but dialogue better
- Legislation passed by Beijing comes in response to waves of US actions against individuals in China, including Hong Kong, and may give Washington cause to think again
The passing by China’s top legislative body of an anti-sanctions law, including countermeasures to be taken against foreign powers, levels the playing field in its tense relationship with the United States.
The law provides a legal basis for Chinese counter-sanctions, previously imposed by administrative order. Legal backing could have far-reaching implications for effective implementation.
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China passes anti-sanctions law as a countermeasure to sanctions by foreign countries
As a result the new law will be closely scrutinised in government and corporate circles from America to Europe to Hong Kong for detail that could impact on officials and businesses or their partners.
Some provisions mirror Western measures against Chinese and Hong Kong organisations and individuals, according to Tam Yiu-chung, Hong Kong’s only delegate to the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress. They include the freezing of assets and institutional transactions with targeted individuals.
Beijing has been discussing the latest step for some time, even before the US increasingly targeted China with sanctions. There was a need to come up with an effective response to sanctions on development partners in the Belt and Road Initiative.
