US diplomatic boycott of 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing confirmed

The US will carry out a diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing as a statement against, “China's "ongoing genocide and crimes against humanity in Xinjiang," the White House press secretary Jen Psaki said on Monday.

US diplomatic boycott of Winter Olympics

The boycott means there will be no official US delegation to the Winter Olympics, but US athletes will be able to compete. The boycott covers the Paralympic Winter Games too.

The boycott had been threatened by president Joe Biden for some time, and is an escalation in pressure on China from the US over allegations of human rights abuses carried out against the Uyghur population in China’s Western region of Xinjiang, along with other ethnic and religious minority groups.

"US diplomatic or official representation would treat these games as business as usual in the face of the PRC's egregious human rights abuses and atrocities in Xinjiang, and we simply can't do that," Psaki said at the press conference.

The press secretary said the White House has told its allies of the US decision to carry out  the diplomatic boycott.

The boycott was not discussed during the three-and-a-half hour conversation between President Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping last month. That summit  saw a "healthy debate" between the two leaders, according to a senior US official present, with Biden raising issues including human rights, Chinese aggression toward Taiwan and trade issues.

The Winter Olympics in Beijing is scheduled to run from Friday, February 4 2022 to Sunday, February 20, 2022.

American corporate sponsors of Winter Olympics

With the news that the US would not send government officials to the 2022 Winter Olympics, the State Department said it wants the private sector to operate with full information about what is occurring in Xinjiang.

"We want the private sector to be fully cognizant and to operate with full information with regard to what is transpiring in Xinjiang," State Department spokesman Ned Price said to reporters when asked whether the Biden administration wants American companies to join in boycotting the Olympic games.

Spokesman Price added that it is not the role of the government to dictate the approach of private companies.

The Worldwide Olympic Partners include Airbnb, Coca-Cola, Dow Chemical company, General Electric, Intel, Procter & Gamble and Visa.