China Delays Credentials for Journalists With U.S. Media Outlets

(Bloomberg) -- Chinese authorities delayed renewing the press credentials of some journalists working for American media outlets, including Bloomberg News, CNN and the Wall Street Journal, in response to the Trump administration limiting visa terms for Chinese reporters in the U.S.

The journalists in Beijing were told their residence permits will at this stage be extended until Nov. 6, which appears to coincide with the date when the 90-day visas given to Chinese press in the U.S. will need to be renewed. Two non-Americans at Bloomberg News received a letter allowing them to work and stay in the country in lieu of having official press credentials, which in the past were normally good for 12 months.

A Bloomberg spokesperson declined to comment. The Foreign Correspondents’ Club of China called on Beijing to reverse the move.

“These coercive practices have again turned accredited foreign journalists in China into pawns in a wider diplomatic conflict,” the group said in a statement Monday. “The FCCC calls on the Chinese government to halt this cycle of tit-for-tat reprisals in what is quickly becoming the darkest year yet for media freedoms.”

The dispute is one of several friction points in an increasingly broad clash between the two political systems. While China’s news organizations are overwhelmingly state-run and subject to strict censorship overseen by the ruling Communist Party, the U.S.’s private news organizations emphasize scrutiny of government actions.

The U.S. has traditionally granted more visas to Chinese media outlets, while China more tightly controls the entrance of foreign journalists. The Trump administration has sought greater parity between the two sides, what it calls “reciprocity.”

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said Monday that visa extension applications for the journalists were being processed and in the meantime “they can continue to live and work here with no problems at all.”

“We would be glad to continue our excellent cooperation with the #US journalists here if the Chinese journalists are treated fairly in the US,” Hua wrote on Twitter.

At a regular news briefing later Monday, Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian accused the U.S. of “kidnapping” journalists and taking “hostages” in the dispute. “For China, all options are on the table,” he said, noting that the U.S. had also refused to rule out any actions.

“If the U.S. truly cares about American journalists in China, it should extend the visas for all Chinese journalists as soon as possible instead of kidnapping Chinese and American journalists out of selfish political purposes,” Zhao said.

Beijing has said the U.S. has expelled more than 60 Chinese media personnel and denied visas to more than 20 others. Meanwhile, the FCCC said the Chinese government had forced a record 17 foreign correspondents to leave in the first half of this year and put at least a dozen more on visas as short as one month.

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