Trump strikes China over virus, Hong Kong and student visas

 President Donald Trump has anunced that he would withdraw funding from World Health Organization, end Hong Kong’s special trade status and suspend visas of Chinese graduate students suspected of conducting research on behalf of ir government, escalating tensions with China that have surged during coronavirus pandemic.

president said in a White House anuncement Friday that Chinese officials “igred” ir reporting obligations to WHO and pressured organization to mislead public about an outbreak that has w killed more than 100,000 Americans.

“We have detailed reforms that it must make and engd with m directly, but y have refused to act,” president said. “Because y have failed to make requested and greatly needed reforms, we will be today terminating relationship.”

U.S. is largest source of financial support for WHO, and its exit is expected to significantly weaken organization. Trump said U.S. would be “redirecting” money to “or worldwide and deserving urgent global public health needs,” without providing specifics.

He ted that U.S. contributes about $450 million to world body while China provides about $40 million.

Congressional Democrats said in April, when president first proposed withholding money from WHO, that it would be illegal without approval from Congress and that y would challenge it. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Friday called move “an act of extraordinary senselessness.”

Or critics of administration’s decision to cut funding called it misguided, saying it would undermine an important institution that is leading vaccine development efforts and drug trials to address COVID-19 outbreak.

“Severing ties with World Health Organization serves logical purpose and makes finding a way out of this public health crisis dramatically more challenging,” said Dr. Patrice Harris, president of American Medical Association.

WHO declined to comment on anuncement. Officials of U.N. ncy have t directly addressed a letter that Trump sent to general director on May 18 warning that he would make permanent a temporary freeze on U.S. funding and reconsider U.S. membership unless it committed to “major substantive improvements within next 30 days.”

Republican Sen. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, chairman of Senate health committee, also warned that president’s decision could interfere with vaccine trials and international cooperation during future outbreaks.

“Certainly re needs to be a good, hard look at mistakes World Health Organization might have made in connection with coronavirus, but time to do that is after crisis has been dealt with, t in middle of it,” said Alexander, echoing a point made by ors, including head of United Nations.

At an event later Friday, Trump was asked about relations with China, and he repeated his earlier suspicions about how country mand to apparently contain virus in Wuhan while it spread to Europe and United States.

“Well, we’re certainly t happy with what happened with respect to China,” he told reporters.

Tensions over Hong Kong have increased over past year as China has cracked down on protesters a

Trump said administration would begin eliminating “full range” of agreements that had given Hong Kong a relationship with U.S. that mainland China lacked, including exemptions from controls on certain exports. He said State Department would begin warning U.S. citizens of threat of surveillance and arrest when visiting city.

“China has replaced its promised formula of one country, two systems, with one country, one system,” he said.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo

It’s t yet clear what impact decision will have on U.S. companies that operate in Hong Kong or on city’s position as Asia’s major financial hub, or how China will react to decision.

“ downward spiral in bilateral relationship has w reached lows t seen since June 4, 1989, Tiananmen massacre, and re is little reason to expect things to get better soon,” said Dexter Tiff Roberts, an Asia expert at Atlantic Council, which publishes npartisan policy analysis.

Rep. Chris Smith, a New Jersey Republican who is a commissioner of Congressional Executive Commission on China, praised decision on Hong Kong as an overdue response to government of President Xi Jinping for human rights abuses, including against religious mirities in Xinjiang region.

“After years of human rights admonishment and cheap rhetoric devoid of any meaningful penalties, Xi has concluded that West is all talk, action,” Smith said. “President Trump, however, is today beginning to change that and is doing what previous presidents have failed to do.”

president also said U.S. would be suspending entry of Chinese graduate students who are suspected of taking part in an extensive government campaign to acquire trade kwledge and academic research for country’s military and industrial development.

Allowing ir continued entry to country would be “detrimental to interests of United States,” Trump said in an order released after White House anuncement.

Revocation of visas has faced opposition from U.S. universities and scientific organizations that depend on tuition fees paid by Chinese students to offset or costs and fear possible reciprocal action from Beijing that could limit ir access to China.

president's order includes an exemptions for students whose work was t expected to benefit Chinese military.

China seemed to signal in recent days that it was hoping to ease tensions. Premier Li Keqiang told reporters on Thursday that both countries stood to gain from cooperation and to lose from confrontation because ir ecomies have become so interconnected.

“We must use our wisdom to expand common interests and man differences and disagreements,” Li said.

Still, country has insisted that its control of Hong Kong is an internal matter, and it has disputed that it mishandled response to virus.