WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump’s administration said Wednesday it fired a State Department employee who did not acknowledge a romantic relationship with a Chinese national.
“The State Department has officially terminated the employment of a Foreign Service officer who admitted concealing a romantic relationship with a Chinese national with known ties to the Chinese Communist Party,” State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said.
The State Department said the officer, a man whom it did not identify, said on camera that the Chinese woman “could have been a spy” but did not say if there was any proof of espionage.
The dismissed employee said his partner’s father was “straight-up communist party,” according to the State Department.
The Chinese Communist Party permeates life in the billion-plus country in areas from business to education, with many ordinary Chinese maintaining ties out of practicality as much as ideology.
The State Department said it was the first known dismissal taken under an executive order signed by Trump shortly after returning to office in which he ordered that all employees “faithfully implement the president’s policy.”
“We will maintain a zero-tolerance policy for any employee who is caught undermining our country’s national security,” Pigott said.
The United States earlier this year said it would restrict employees in China from entering romantic relationships with locals, a rare step reminiscent of the Cold War.
US State Department fires diplomat over relationship with Chinese
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US State Department fires diplomat over relationship with Chinese
- Diplomat admitted concealing a romantic relationship with a Chinese national with known ties to the Chinese Communist Party, says department spokesman
- The Trump administration earlier this year said it would restrict employees in China from entering romantic relationships with locals, a rare step reminiscent of the Cold War
French foreign minister says US military operations in Caribbean violate international law
- US officials said on Tuesday the world’s largest aircraft carrier, the Gerald Ford, had moved into the region, adding to the eight warships, a nuclear submarine and F-35 aircraft already in the Caribbean
NIAGARA-ON-THE-LAKE, Canada: France is worried about US military operations in the Caribbean because they violate international law, the country’s foreign minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on Tuesday.
The US military has carried out at least 19 strikes so far against suspected drug vessels in the Caribbean and off the Pacific coasts of Latin America, killing at least 76 people.
“We have observed with concern the military operations in the Caribbean region, because they violate international law and because France has a presence in this region through its overseas territories, where more than a million of our compatriots reside,” Barrot said on the sidelines of the Group of Seven foreign ministers’ summit in Canada.
“They could therefore be affected by the instability caused by any escalation, which we obviously want to avoid.”
US officials said on Tuesday the world’s largest aircraft carrier, the Gerald Ford, had moved into the region, adding to the eight warships, a nuclear submarine and F-35 aircraft already in the Caribbean.
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has repeatedly alleged that the US buildup is designed to drive him from power.
