Dharamshala, 7th December: The United States has launched a diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympics in China, a decision that Beijing has slammed. Because of worries over China’s human rights record, the White House announced that no official delegation will be sent to the Games. However, it stated that US athletes would be welcome to compete and would have the government’s full support. China described the US move as a “self-directed political farce.” Beijing had already stated that it will take “resolute countermeasures” against such a boycott, expecting the news.
Following the declaration by the United States, New Zealand announced on Tuesday that it would not be sending a delegation. Other countries, such as the United Kingdom and Australia, are reportedly mulling boycotts. The Chinese embassy in Washington also weighed in on the announcement, calling the boycott a “grave distortion of the Olympic Charter’s spirit.”
Support from both parties:
Both Democratic and Republican politicians in the United States hailed the diplomatic boycott. Mitt Romney, a Republican from Utah, tweeted that the Biden administration was “correct to decline” a diplomatic presence at the Olympics, while Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi praised the decision.
However, some US legislators believe the diplomatic boycott is insufficient, with Senator Tom Cotton describing it as a “half measure” and arguing that the administration should have chosen to “completely boycott” the games.
The Biden administration’s diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympics pales in comparison to a previous US boycott in 1980 when it withdrew its athletes from the Moscow Olympics in protest of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan the year before.
Because of “severe fears” about Ms. Peng’s safety, the Women’s Tennis Association stopped all tournaments in China last week.