US lawmakers say Hong Kong is changing into hub for monetary crime

(Reuters) -Lawmakers within the U.S. Home of Representatives have requested Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to rethink ties with Hong Kong’s banking sector, saying town has grow to be a high location for cash laundering and sanctions evasion.

Hong Kong has become a hub for a lot of violations of U.S. commerce controls, together with export of managed Western expertise to Russia and the creation of entrance corporations to purchase Iranian oil, the bipartisan leaders of the Home of Representatives Choose Committee on the Chinese language Communist Social gathering mentioned in a letter to Yellen.

The letter, scheduled to be publicly launched on Monday, mentioned that Hong Kong has shifted from being a trusted international monetary heart to a crucial participant within the deepening authoritarian axis of China, Iran, Russia and North Korea.

“We should now query whether or not longstanding U.S. coverage in direction of Hong Kong, notably in direction of its monetary and banking sector, is suitable,” a duplicate of the letter seen by Reuters mentioned.

The letter, signed by Republican John Moolenaar, who chairs the committee, and Raja Krishnamoorthi, the committee’s rating Democrat, cited analysis that reveals almost 40% of products shipped from Hong Kong to Russia in 2023 had been high-priority objects corresponding to semiconductors that Russia might use to prosecute its conflict in Ukraine.

The U.S. Treasury Division didn’t instantly reply to Reuters’ requests for feedback. Hong Kong’s commerce workplace in New York couldn’t be instantly reached for remark