The Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian Photo: File

The Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian announced sanctions on 11 US lawmakers and heads of nongovernmental organizations on Monday afternoon. The move is obviously a reciprocal retaliation against US sanctions announced Friday on senior Hong Kong officials including Carrie Lam, and central government officials related to Hong Kong, 11 of them in total. Beijing is once again sending a clear message to Washington that China will not compromise in the face of diplomatic crackdown from the US. 

Those lawmakers and heads of so-called NGOs on the sanctioned list are notorious in China and many developing countries. It can be said that the Chinese side has chosen the right targets  and made a very strong response.

Neither the US sanctions on Chinese personnel nor reciprocal retaliation by the Chinese side will have much real impact, but the political contest will certainly have broad implications. The US sanctions have exposed arrogance and bullying to the world, while China's countermeasures are a practice of the principle of reciprocity among major powers and a firm commitment to China's national dignity. It is becoming clearer what the US will receive in return for next sanctions on China.

Beijing has sanctioned 11 people from the US and Hong Kong police arrested 10 people including Jimmy Lai Chee-ying on Monday. This has greatly inspired the Hong Kong society. It also further boosted the confidence of Chinese society as a whole. In the face of pressure from the US, the central government and Hong Kong are not intimidated.

Also on Monday, J-11 and J-10 fighter jets of the People's Liberation Army flew across the so-called "middle line" of the Taiwan Straits, in response to Alex Azar, US Health and Human Services secretary's visit to Taiwan.  It was a day that China has come up with a series of countermeasures. 

Confrontation with China will not help the US, nor will it help its prestige and self-esteem. Actions of the US side objectively helped Chinese society to get mature more quickly. We can fully handle the impact of an all-out assault by the US. Chinese people are more sure of themselves. 

China will sanction as many Americans as the US sanctions the Chinese. The US has shut down Chinese consulate and expelled Chinese diplomats and journalists in a disguised way. China would in turn take reciprocal measures against US consulate, diplomats and journalists. After several rounds, the logic of China-US contention has become clearer.

If Washington wants to make Hong Kong the focal point of the contention between China and the US, it has definitely chosen the wrong place. 

China will continue to open wider to the outside world. We will coordinate this national policy to the greatest extent possible with the contention with the US.  The US government has become increasingly stubborn on China, but China will not. We are engaged in an unprecedented exploration of foreign relations. We are sober and will succeed.