- Outgoing secretary of state imposes new sanctions on Beijing
- Officials say 1m minorities in Xinjiang have been imprisoned
On his way out of the door, Mike Pompeo, the US secretary of state, has hit China with new sanctions by declaring that China’s policies on Muslims and ethnic minorities in western Xinjiang province constitute a “genocide”.
Pompeo made the determination on Tuesday just 24 hours before Joe Biden takes office. There was no immediate response from the incoming Biden team, although several members have been sympathetic to such a designation in the past. Pompeo’s determination does not come with any immediate repercussions.
