The United States on Wednesday revoked Hong Kong's special status under US law, opening the way to strip trading privileges for the financial hub as Washington accused China of trampling on the territory's autonomy.
Hours before China's rubber-stamp parliament was set to take a key vote on a new Hong Kong security law that has sparked protests, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo certified to Congress that Hong Kong "does not continue to warrant treatment" under US laws that it has enjoyed even after its handover to China in 1997.
Under a law passed last year to support Hong Kong's pro-democracy protesters, the US administration must certify that the territory still enjoys freedoms promised by Beijing when negotiating with Britain to take back the colony.
"No reasonable person can assert today that Hong Kong maintains a high degree of autonomy from China, given facts on the ground," Pompeo said in a statement.
President Donald Trump will ultimately decide which actions to take, said David Stilwell, the top State Department official for East Asia.
Any body who really thought China would abide by this is out of touch in reality.•••••
Beijing has been infuriated by Hong Kongers -- especially football fans -- booing the national anthem to signal dissatisfaction with China.
The anthem bill will likely be approved next week after further debate following its second reading on Wednesday.
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