


A diplomat has been fired after the State Department said he had a romantic relationship with a Chinese woman allegedly linked to the Chinese Communist Party.
The State Department had an existing ban from the Biden administration on relationships with Chinese citizens, but the diplomat’s firing is believed to have been the first time the policy has been enforced.
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Specifically, the policy bans all U.S. government personnel in China, their family members, and contractors with security clearances from any romantic or sexual relationships with Chinese citizens.
The diplomat was dismissed after President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio reviewed his case and decided that he “admitted conceal[ed] a romantic relationship with a Chinese national with known ties to the Chinese Communist Party,” a State Department spokesman told the Associated Press.
“Under Secretary Rubio’s leadership, we will maintain a zero-tolerance policy for any employee who is caught undermining our country’s national security,” he said.
In an undercover sting operation, James O’Keefe caught the Foreign Service Officer admitting that he dated a Chinese girl and was supposed to report what he knew about her. He also said that her father was “straight up Communist Party” and added that the girl “could have been a spy.”
“I defied my government for love,” he declared.
The conservative journalist’s group is known for taking interviewees’ statements out of context and recording without their knowledge.
A Chinese government spokesperson declined to comment to the Associated Press on what he declared was a domestic policy issue.
“But I would like to stress that we oppose drawing lines based on ideological difference and maliciously smearing China,” the Chinese Foreign Ministry’s Guo Jiakun said at a daily briefing.
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Rubio planned to “aggressively revoke” the visas of Chinese students, including those with links to the CCP, earlier this year amid concerns that some could be participating in espionage.
“The State Department will work with the Department of Homeland Security to aggressively revoke visas for Chinese students, including those with connections to the Chinese Communist Party or studying in critical fields,” Rubio said. “Those found to be engaging in espionage or enrolled in programs considered sensitive to the security or economic interests of the United States could have their visas revoked.”