Washington condemns the rewards offered by the Hong Kong authorities for any help that would contribute to the arrest of pro-democracy activists living in the US, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement today, quoted by Agence France-Presse and BTA.
"We will not tolerate the Hong Kong government's attempts to apply its national security laws to silence or intimidate Americans or other individuals living on US territory," Rubio said.
The Hong Kong authorities announced yesterday that they were offering rewards for any information leading to the arrest of 19 pro-democracy activists living abroad, accused of violating the national security law imposed by Beijing in 2020.
This is the fourth time that the Hong Kong authorities have make a similar call, which has already drawn sharp criticism from Western countries, condemned as "interference in the internal affairs" of Hong Kong and China.
Rubio criticized this "new series of arrest warrants and rewards", which he said "continues to limit the autonomy that Beijing itself had promised" to Hong Kong.
"Freedom of speech and political expression are core American values that the Trump administration will continue to defend," the US Secretary of State added.