Despite the fact that Hong Kong belongs to mainland China, the inhabitants of the autonomy are increasingly talking about the United States. Demonstrations began against changes to the extradition law. When Beijing made concessions to resolve the situation, the protesters did not disperse. On the contrary, the requirements got greater and vaguer. The protesters voiced demands to punish the police for the cruelty shown during the suppression of actions, they showed American flags and posters with the image of Uncle Sam, shouted «we want freedom and democracy». So where did such statements come from?
The American administration openly supports rallies and condemns law enforcement officials in the use of force, turning a blind eye to the fact that the demonstrators themselves are not conflict-free. There are plenty of examples of vandalism and rioting of protesters. Demonstrators blocked roads in different areas in order to paralyze traffic (buses were disrupted on dozens of routes and several metro stations were closed). Masked people blocked the streets (which eventually grew into setting fire to debris and destroying storefronts), built barricades and broke traffic lights. It should be recalled that the situation with the office of the Chinese news Agency Xinhua, when on November 2, a group of radicals trashed the office and tried to set it on fire. When the police arrived, the protesters threw stones and Molotov cocktails at them. The guards had to use tear gas.
Despite all of the above, the United States calls the protests peaceful, condemns possible interference by China, prohibits licenses issuance for the export of Chinese military products and services to Hong Kong police, and also adopts several resolutions on China's autonomy. What the intervention of the American administration in Hong Kong affairs can lead to?
The Hong Kong economy is more dependent on services and tourism, and conflicts between demonstrators and police do not attract tourists. As a result of this, there is a threat of economic crisis, which will affect mainland China.
Thus, the whole situation reduces the degree of confidence of Beijing in Washington. Even though the United States and China have reached some commercial agreement, the conclusion of a full-fledged trade agreement is still very far away.
