Washington warns of danger from China in remembering the 1989 Tiananmen crackdown

WASHINGTON (AP) — Members of the U.S. Congress on Tuesday said the ruling Chinese Communist Party that sent in tanks against peaceful student protesters 35 years ago in the heart of Beijing is as ruthless and suppressive today as it was in 1989, a stark warning as they commemorated the anniversary of China’s bloody crackdown in Tiananmen Square.

Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, the ranking Democratic member of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, warned that Chinese leader Xi Jinping would resort to violence, as his predecessors did, to achieve his goals.

“We have to remember that when Chairman Xi Jinping says he will crack down hard on subversion and separatist activities… he’s telling the world that the (party) will send those tanks again against anyone that stands up for freedom,” the Illinois congressman said, with the iconic image of a lone man facing down a line of tanks nearby.

The Tuesday commemorations, which included former student leaders of the Tiananmen movement and younger activists from mainland China and Hong Kong, come as Washington has shifted its China policy from engagement to competition meant to curb China’s growing influences, which the U.S. sees as potentially upsetting the world order. The two countries also are clashing over Beijing’s militarization of the South China Sea and its increasing military threats against the self-governed island of Taiwan.

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