(Bloomberg) -- The unexpected U.S. decision to order China's consulate in Houston to close -- with staff given 72 hours to depart -- delivers a severe diplomatic blow to a relationship already under strain, and will likely lead to a smaller U.S. footprint in China, as well.
In addition to embassies in Beijing and Washington, the U.S. and China maintain five consulates inside each other's borders. China's consulates are in Houston, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago and New York, where it also maintains a United Nations mission. The Houston outpost served a region stretching from Texas to Puerto Rico.
China has some 300 diplomats in Washington, according to the State Department, but totals at other consulates, while lower, aren't disclosed.
The U.S. has consulates in Shenyang, Shanghai, Chengdu, Guangzhou and Wuhan, where the coronavirus is believed to have emerged. The Guangzhou outpost is one of the biggest visa hubs for the U.S. in the entire world. The U.S. also has a large consulate in Hong Kong, which has historically been treated separately from mainland China.
China's vow to retaliate against the U.S. move likely means one of those diplomatic compounds may close. The U.S. usually has about 700-1,000 diplomats in China who do everything from issuing visas to conducting espionage, although total numbers have been far lower since the Covid-19 pandemic prompted the U.S. to pull staff back.
While there has been speculation that China might close the U.S.'s consulate in Wuhan, Hu Xijin, the editor of the Communist Party's Global Times newspaper, suggested Beijing wouldn't see that as proportionate. “I think China's target will be more likely unexpected, causing the US to feel real pain,” Hu said Thursday on Twitter.
“They could close Wuhan. That would not be quite, would not be the same as closing Houston,” Max Baucus, a former U.S. ambassador to China and ex-Democratic senator for Montana, told Bloomberg Television. “There are other things they can do. They can also say ‘OK, fewer American diplomats into China now,' because there are many more American diplomats in China than there are Chinese diplomats in America.”
Some U.S. officials say the Chinese consulate in Houston was deeply involved in espionage activities. It would have also been involved in issuing visas to American companies seeking to send energy industry employees to China.
The People's Republic of China first established a representative office in Washington in the early 1970s following President Richard Nixon's historic visit. The office was converted into an embassy when the two countries established official diplomatic ties in 1979.
©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
Essential Business Intelligence, Continuous LIVE TV, Sharp Market Insights, Practical Personal Finance Advice and Latest Stories — On NDTV Profit.
