State Department Nominee Confirms FBI Was Blocked From Arresting Chinese Security Officials

The nominee for a key State Department Asia policy-making post confirmed Thursday the State Department took part in preventing the FBI from arresting Chinese intelligence officials for conducting illegal activities in New York recently, but asserted she did not take part in the decision.

Susan Thornton, a career foreign service officer widely viewed among Republicans as favoring conciliatory policies toward China, testified before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that if confirmed, her policies toward China at State would closely resemble the soft-line policies of the Obama administration.

Thornton, currently acting assistant secretary of state for East Asia and Pacific affairs was nominated for the key China post by Trump in December.

While acting secretary, she has taken positions toward China that sought to avoid upsetting relations with Beijing, according to administration officials who have taken part in inter-agency discussions with her.

For example, in addition to opposing the FBI arrests of four Chinese Ministry of State Security (MSS) intelligence officials last October, Thornton also worked during inter-agency meetings to prevent the White House from imposing reciprocal restrictions Chinese embassy construction in retaliation for China for blocking the importation of parts into China needed for repairs at the U.S. Embassy in Beijing.

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