City Beat | Whirlwind US-China relations herald stormy outlook in Hong Kong oasis of American calm
- Extradition bill saga adds new dimension to straining Sino-US relationship, as Beijing rails against Washington ‘interference’
- New American consul general in city faces tough test shielding close US-Hong Kong ties from diplomatic downturn
Is China a friend or a foe to the United States? Ask Americans these days and the answer is more likely to be the latter.
Is the US a friend or a foe to China? Ask Chinese people and the answers can be mixed, but many still hope they can remain friends.
Chinese President Xi Jinping once put it this way: there are 1,000 reasons for China and the US to maintain a good relationship; there is not one single reason to ruin it.
But this bilateral relationship, one of the world’s most important, could be complicated by the Hong Kong factor, amid the ongoing extradition bill saga.
In one telling episode early this month, Kurt Tong was confronted by a group of angry pro-establishment protesters as the departing US consul general in Hong Kong attended his last public farewell function.
