US lawmakers accuse Hong Kong of enabling global financial crimes
Photo: US Congress is demanding action against Hong Kong (Getty Images)
The leaders of the US House of Representatives Committee stated that Hong Kong has become a center of financial crime as Beijing has tightened control over the city, according to Bloomberg.
Since Beijing implemented the national security law in Hong Kong in mid-2020, the city "has shifted from a trusted global financial center to a critical player in the deepening authoritarian axis" of China, Iran, Russia, and North Korea, according to a letter addressed to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen.
The letter, signed by Committee Chair Representative John Moolenaar of Michigan and ranking Democrat Raja Krishnamoorthi of Illinois, also questioned "whether longstanding US policy towards Hong Kong, particularly towards its financial and banking sector, is appropriate."
Relations between Hong Kong and the United States have deteriorated due to crackdowns on dissent, which US officials claim undermine the rule of law and democratic rights.
American lawmakers have intensified efforts to hold the city accountable, although it remains unclear whether these initiatives will yield tangible results.
Marco Rubio, Donald Trump’s nominee for Secretary of State, criticized Hong Kong’s offices as "mouthpieces of the ruling Communist Party."
Center of financial crimes
In their letter, Moolenaar and Krishnamoorthi accused Hong Kong of becoming a "global leader" in illegal activities, including:
- Giving Russia access to prohibited Western technology
- Forming front companies for buying banned Iranian oil
- Helping with the trade of gold from Russia
- Running ships that conduct illegal trade with North Korea.
The letter cited studies showing that approximately 40% of goods shipped to Russia from Hong Kong last year were on the "common high priority" list used by the US and EU to enforce sanctions.
These goods included "semiconductors and other technology that Russia most needs for its war in Ukraine."
In July, Ukraine's then-Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba urged Hong Kong's Chief Executive John Lee to take measures to prevent Russia and its companies from using the city to circumvent sanctions imposed by Western governments in response to Moscow's full-scale invasion in 2022.
At the time, Hong Kong’s government stated that it enforced UN Security Council sanctions but did not directly address whether it had aided Moscow in bypassing trade restrictions.
Chinese state-owned banks tightened restrictions on financing Russian clients after the US imposed secondary sanctions on foreign financial companies assisting Moscow’s military efforts.
