UPDATE - US Lawmakers Move To Prevent Expelled Chinese Officials From Reapplying For Visas

WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 30th July, 2020) US lawmakers in both chambers of Congress introduced legislation that would deny visas to any Chinese officials expelled on spying charges, Senator Marco Rubio's office said on Wednesday.

The Trump administration recently closed the Chinese consulate in the state of Texas, with officials claiming the facility was used as a base for hackers to steal proprietary data from defense contractors and other technology companies concentrated in the region.

"Under current law, the Chinese Communist Party's spies expelled from the US have the ability to immediately reapply for visas. The Protecting America from Spies Act would update the Immigration and Naturalization Act to ensure past, present, and future espionage and tech-transfer activity is considered inadmissible for entry into the United States," Rubio's office said in a statement.

The bill would allow the State Department to deny visas to individuals who have committed acts of espionage or intellectual property theft against the United States, the release added.

The proposed law would also target spouses and children of aliens engaged in espionage or tech-transfer, the release added.

Senators Ted Cruz, Thom Tillis, and Kelly Loeffler cosponsored the legislation, and a companion bill was introduced in the House by Congresswoman Vicky Hartler, according to the release.

While China was the only country cited by name, the legislation would presumably apply to visa seekers from other nations as well.

China denied the accusations and took reciprocal measures by closing the US consulate in Chengdu.

China's Foreign Ministry said the Houston consulate was the state property of Beijing protected by the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations and a US-Chinese agreement.