China orders U.S. to shut Chengdu consulate
China has ordered the U.S. to shut down its consulate in the city of Chengdu.
It's a move widely seen as equal retaliation for Washington ordering Beijing to shut down its own mission in Houston, Texas this week.
The order is another sign U.S.-China ties have hit their lowest point in decades.
China's Foreign Ministry said on Friday (July 24) the Chengdu closure was a fair response to what happened in Houston.
"The U.S. move seriously breached the international law, the basic norms of international relations, and the terms of the China-US Consular Convention. It gravely harmed China-U.S. relations. The measure taken by China is a legitimate and necessary response to the unreasonable action by the U.S."
Chengdu is one of five U.S. consulates in mainland China...
...with a sixth major mission in Hong Kong.
The news came hours after a major speech by U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on ties with China.
He said America and its allies must use quote "more creative and assertive ways" to press the Chinese Communist Party, or CCP, to change its ways.
"President Nixon once said he feared he had created a 'Frankenstein' by opening the world to the CCP, and here we are."
A source had previously told Reuters that China was considering shutting the U.S. consulate in Wuhan, where the United States withdrew staff early this year as the coronavirus outbreak raged.
