China threatens countermeasures if US boycotts Beijing Olympics

BEIJING, Dec 6 (Reuters) – U.S. politicians should stop calling for a diplomatic boycott of the Beijing Winter Olympics to avoid hurting bilateral ties and China will take “countermeasures” if necessary, China’s foreign ministry said on Monday.

The Biden administration is expected to announce this week that U.S. government officials will not attend the 2022 Olympics in Beijing, a source familiar with the situation said, confirming reports by CNN and NBC. Those calling for a boycott are “grandstanding” and should stop “so as not to affect the dialogue and cooperation between China and the United States in important areas,” said Zhao Lijian, China’s foreign ministry spokesman.

“If the U.S. insists in wilfully clinging to its course, China will take resolute countermeasures,” he said at a news conference