<p>China on Friday ordered the closure of the US consulate in the southwestern city of Chengdu in retaliation for America shuttering Beijing's diplomatic mission in Houston this week.</p>.<p>The move was a "legitimate and necessary response to the unreasonable measures by the United States", the foreign ministry said in a statement.</p>.<p>"The current situation in China-US relations is not what China desires to see, and the US is responsible for all this," the statement added.</p>.<p>Tensions have soared on multiple fronts between the world's two biggest economies, deteriorating further after Washington ordered the closure of the Houston consulate on Tuesday within 72 hours.</p>.<p>The United States cited Chinese theft of intellectual property for the closure, which came a day after the Justice Department unveiled the indictment of two Chinese nationals for allegedly hacking hundreds of companies and attempting to steal coronavirus vaccine research.</p>.<p>China had threatened to retaliate against the consulate closure if the US did not withdraw its decision.</p>.<p>In its statement on Friday, China's urged the US again to backtrack and "create the necessary conditions for bilateral relations to return to normal".</p>.<p>The US has an embassy in Beijing as well as five consulates in mainland China and one in Hong Kong.</p>.<p>The Chengdu consulate was established in 1985 and has around 200 staff with approximately 150 locally hired Chinese employees, according to its website.</p>.<p>It has been the site of diplomatic drama in past years.</p>.<p>In 2013, China demanded the US provide an explanation for a spying programme after news reports said a top-secret map leaked by fugitive intelligence analyst Edward Snowden showed US surveillance facilities at embassies and consulates worldwide -- with the Chengdu consulate among them.</p>.<p>The Chengdu mission was also where senior Chinese official Wang Lijun fled in 2012 from his powerful boss Bo Xilai who was then head of the nearby metropolis Chongqing.</p>.<p>In recent days, Washington and Beijing have been crossing swords over a slew of issues ranging from trade to the coronavrius pandemic and China's policies on Hong Kong, Xinjiang and the South China Sea.</p>.<p>Republican Senator Marco Rubio earlier called China's Houston consulate the "central node of the Communist Party's vast network of spies and influence operations in the United States".</p>.<p>Michael McCaul, Republican Leader on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said the consulate was the "epicentre" of Chinese efforts to steal "sensitive information to build up their military".</p>.<p>The comments drew ire from Beijing, with foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin labelling Washington's allegations "malicious slander".</p>
<p>China on Friday ordered the closure of the US consulate in the southwestern city of Chengdu in retaliation for America shuttering Beijing's diplomatic mission in Houston this week.</p>.<p>The move was a "legitimate and necessary response to the unreasonable measures by the United States", the foreign ministry said in a statement.</p>.<p>"The current situation in China-US relations is not what China desires to see, and the US is responsible for all this," the statement added.</p>.<p>Tensions have soared on multiple fronts between the world's two biggest economies, deteriorating further after Washington ordered the closure of the Houston consulate on Tuesday within 72 hours.</p>.<p>The United States cited Chinese theft of intellectual property for the closure, which came a day after the Justice Department unveiled the indictment of two Chinese nationals for allegedly hacking hundreds of companies and attempting to steal coronavirus vaccine research.</p>.<p>China had threatened to retaliate against the consulate closure if the US did not withdraw its decision.</p>.<p>In its statement on Friday, China's urged the US again to backtrack and "create the necessary conditions for bilateral relations to return to normal".</p>.<p>The US has an embassy in Beijing as well as five consulates in mainland China and one in Hong Kong.</p>.<p>The Chengdu consulate was established in 1985 and has around 200 staff with approximately 150 locally hired Chinese employees, according to its website.</p>.<p>It has been the site of diplomatic drama in past years.</p>.<p>In 2013, China demanded the US provide an explanation for a spying programme after news reports said a top-secret map leaked by fugitive intelligence analyst Edward Snowden showed US surveillance facilities at embassies and consulates worldwide -- with the Chengdu consulate among them.</p>.<p>The Chengdu mission was also where senior Chinese official Wang Lijun fled in 2012 from his powerful boss Bo Xilai who was then head of the nearby metropolis Chongqing.</p>.<p>In recent days, Washington and Beijing have been crossing swords over a slew of issues ranging from trade to the coronavrius pandemic and China's policies on Hong Kong, Xinjiang and the South China Sea.</p>.<p>Republican Senator Marco Rubio earlier called China's Houston consulate the "central node of the Communist Party's vast network of spies and influence operations in the United States".</p>.<p>Michael McCaul, Republican Leader on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said the consulate was the "epicentre" of Chinese efforts to steal "sensitive information to build up their military".</p>.<p>The comments drew ire from Beijing, with foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin labelling Washington's allegations "malicious slander".</p>