Final Solution

US sanctions are China's big concern right now

By Samantha Vinograd

Lying is trending in Moscow and Beijing.

While Russia mocks the international community's consensus that Moscow used chemical weapons in the UK, you should also expect other misinformation to come, this time out of Beijing.
After reports last week that your administration is considering sanctions against China for its worsening crackdown on Muslims, including the Uighurs, we assess that China will continue a two-pronged public approach: 

1) playing the security card and saying Muslims in China are a security risk, and 

2) claiming the internment camps in East Turkestan, where upwards of a million Muslims are being held, are "educational" and "professional training centers."

Beijing probably thinks that stoking security concerns is a winning strategy for getting a pass on this extraordinary and abusive behavior -- Vladimir Putin consistently engages in similar practices without suffering major consequences. 

Claiming that the camps actually help the detained Muslims by readying them for a different, productive path is a transparent attempt to placate Muslims around the world -- including Muslim leaders that China does a lot of business with.
But, as Secretary of State Mike Pompeo pointed out, countries like Iran haven't come out publicly against this Chinese behavior. 

So, we assess that China's biggest concern at this point are US sanctions under the Global Magnitsky Act -- which allows the US to issue sanctions against a country implicated in human rights violations -- because they could impact senior Chinese officials.