US orders China media outlets to cut staff

Bloomberg

The Trump administration ordered four Chinese state-owned news outlets to slash the number of staff they have working in the US, part of a broader response to Beijing’s restrictions on American journalists including its expulsion of three Wall Street Journal reporters last month.
The move risks further tit-for-tat measures from Beijing as the world’s biggest economies continue a broader battle for global influence even after reaching a phase-one trade deal earlier this year. That wider strategic fight is affecting everything from manufacturing supply chains to 5G mobile-phone technology to the leadership of international organisations.
Starting from March 13, the four outlets will be allowed to employ a combined 100 Chinese citizens in the US, down about 40% from now, two State Department officials told reporters on condition of anonymity. The officials insisted that the reductions weren’t expulsions, though about 60 or so employees will almost certainly need to leave the country.
“Unlike foreign media organisations in China, these entities are not independent news organisations,” Secretary of State Michael Pompeo said in a statement after the officials briefed reporters. “As we have done in other areas of the US-China relationship, we seek to establish a long-overdue level playing field.”
The outlets affected by the move are Xinhua News Agency, China Global Television Network, China Radio International and China Daily Distribution Corp.
A fifth, Hai Tian Development USA, is also included under
the cap but won’t have to cut staff because it has only two Chinese employees on its payroll in the US.
The restrictions stem from an effort by the Trump administration to restore what officials call reciprocity between the way China and the US treat each other’s journalists.
China currently allows about 100 Americans in the country and has severely restricted the number of visas it issues to foreign reporters.
More restrictions are likely to come soon. Another senior
administration official, also briefing reporters ahead of Pompeo’s statement, said the US plans to limit how long Chinese citizens are allowed to stay in the country on journalist visas.