US to reject residency/citizenship applications from Communist party members

US-China relations are already struggling as a result of several factors including the coronavirus pandemic. GETTY IMAGES

The United States will reject applications from members of communist parties around the world for either residency or citizenship, in a move that would further alienate China, the world’s largest communist country with 92 million party members. The move, announced in the latest policy guidance, fell short of banning all communist party members from entering the US, as suggested earlier this year, but still dealt another blow to US-China relations, which already under strain as a result of a trade dispute, China’s human rights record, its militarisation in the South China Sea and the coronavirus pandemic.