China has agreed to accept back Chinese citizens living undocumented in the United States, following President Donald Trump's threat to impose tariffs on Colombia for refusing to accept deported migrants. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Mao Ning, stated, 'China will accept individuals confirmed as Chinese citizens after verification.'
According to the U.S. government, there were approximately 210,000 undocumented Chinese migrants in the United States in 2022, including those from Hong Kong and Macao. This number is likely to have increased due to the arrival of individuals with Chinese passports lacking proper documentation since the end of the pandemic.
Last year, China accepted four planes full of Chinese citizens who were undocumented in the United States, marking a significant change as such a repatriation flight had not been allowed since 2018. Previously, strict COVID-19 controls had closed the borders.
Colombia's ambassador in Washington, Daniel García-Peña, revealed that the diplomatic crisis between Colombia and the United States was on the verge of becoming critical. In an interview with Blu Radio, the diplomat mentioned that a 'trade war' would have been terrible for both countries. Fortunately, the crisis was resolved with Colombia accepting Trump's terms regarding the repatriation of immigrants, thus avoiding the imposition of tariffs and other sanctions.
In summary, China has agreed to accept its undocumented citizens back from the United States, while the diplomatic crisis between Colombia and the United States was close to reaching a critical point but was resolved with the acceptance of the terms proposed by President Trump.
