White House places cap on Chinese state media employees in US following expulsion of WSJ reporters

The move marked the first time since the era of Mao Zedong that China has expelled multiple journalists from one international news organization simultaneously, according to the Journal.

“Our goal is reciprocity. As we have done in other areas of the U.S.-China relationship, we seek to establish a long-overdue level playing field,” Pompeo said in a statement to CNBC about the cap. “It is our hope that this action will spur Beijing to adopt a more fair and reciprocal approach to U.S. and other foreign press in China.”

“We urge the Chinese government to immediately uphold its international commitments to respect freedom of expression, including for members of the press,” Pompeo added. 

The State Department cap will cut the number of Chinese nationals working for the state-run media companies in the United States to 100 employees down from 160, according to the Wall Street Journal.

A State Department spokesperson told CNBC that the cap extends to five Chinese media entities: Xinhua News Agency, China Global Television Network, China Radio International, China Daily Distribution Corporation and Hai Tian Development USA. 

Last month, the Chinese outlets were designated as foreign missions by the White House, meaning that none of the outlets will be regarded as an independent news organization in the country. 

The move to impose a cap may escalate already-existing tensions between the United States and China, which come as the deadly coronavirus outbreak continues to spread globally. 

The Chinese Foreign Ministry did not respond to a request for comment from CNBC.

— CNBC’s Amanda Macias and Kevin Breuninger contributed to this report.

Article source: https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/02/white-house-reduces-chinese-state-owned-media-personnel-in-us.html