Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China

The communications watchdog, Ofcom, said it revoked the U.K. license for China Global Television Network, or CGTN, an international English language satellite news channel. Losing its British broadcasting license is a major setback for CGTN, which has been a key element of the Chinese government's push to expand its soft power and burnish its image abroad.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry responded with renewed criticism of the BBC., specifically a January 29th report on Covid-19 in China, calling it "typical fake news" and demanding a public apology.

China has finally congratulated Joe Biden on his projected win in the US presidential election, indicating China have accepted the result and expect Joe Biden to be inaugurated as president in January despite legal challenges from the Trump campaign.

"We respect the choice of the American people. We extend congratulations to Mr Biden and Ms Harris," a Chinese foreign ministry spokesman said on Friday.

The Chinese Government on Friday ordered the closure of the United States consulate in the southwestern city of Chengdu. The announcement was made just hours before Washington's deadline for the Chinese government to end its diplomatic mission in Houston, Texas.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs released a statement: "On 21 July, the US launched a unilateral provocation by abruptly demanding that China close its Consulate General in Houston. The US move seriously breached international law, the basic norms of international relations, and the terms of the China-US Consular Convention. It gravely harmed China-US relations. The measure taken by China is a legitimate and necessary response to the unjustified act by the US. It conforms with international law, the basic norms of international relations, and customary diplomatic practices."

According to the Chinese Foreign Ministry, China has been ordered to "cease all operations and events" at its consulate in Houston, Texas. The police in Houston has reported smoke from the consulate courtyard as Chinese officials allegedly have burned documents.

Morgan Ortagus, a spokeswoman for the US State Department, has stated that the closure of the consulate has been ordered "to protect American intellectual property and Americans' private information".