The US Senate on Thursday passed by unanimous consent a bipartisan bill to impose sanctions on Chinese officials who threaten Hong Kong’s limited autonomy, as well as the banks and firms that do business with them, sending the legislation to the president’s desk, reported the Wall Street Journal.
The bill passed the House on Wednesday, as thousands of protesters took to the streets in Hong Kong to object to a new law that gives Beijing stronger powers to police the former British colony and punish those accused of subversion and separatism. The legislation now heads to President Trump.
Lawmakers said the legislation moved faster through Congress than expected. “I hope that President Trump will sign this immediately,” Senator Van Hollen said. “As a country, Republicans and Democrats need to send a strong signal that we will not stand for the actions of Beijing undermining their own agreements, agreements under international law which they are bound to.”
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