Tiananmen Square Gave China 'Political Vaccine' Against Unrest Which U.S. Does Not Have, State Media Editor Says

The editor of China's Global Times state-backed newspaper has hit out at the U.S. on the anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre, suggesting that the atrocity has vaccinated China against internal unrest unlike the U.S., where civil unrest continues.

Hu Xijin, the editor of the nationalist Global Times publication, made the comments on Twitter on Thursday as the world market the 31st anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party's crackdown on pro-democracy reformists that took over Tiananmen Square in Beijing in the summer of 1989.

The massacre—in which hundreds, perhaps even thousands of demonstrators and bystanders were shot dead by Chinese soldiers—is not marked in China, where CCP censors have worked hard to remove it from the national memory and criminalized its mention. Dissidents are still largely allowed to recognize the anniversary in the semi-autonomous regions of Hong Kong and Macau.

Hu tweeted in response to a State Department statement honoring the survivors of the massacre and expressing support for those still fighting for democracy and free speech in China.

"The Tiananmen incident gave Chinese society a political vaccine shot, which has enabled us to be immune to any color revolution," Hu wrote, using a term referring to pro-democratic revolutions in authoritarian states that opponents link to Western nations.

"31 years later, riots emerged and spread in the US," Hu wrote of the unrest gripping the country following the killing of black man George Floyd by police in Minneapolis last week. "They only think of exporting it, but forget to prepare vaccine for themselves," Hu added.

Global Times is owned by the People's Daily newspaper, itself the official publication of the CCP. Global Times is used to express the more nationalistic and belligerent sentiment within the CCP, and has become a key outlet for Chinese attacks on the U.S. as Washington, D.C.-Beijing relations have deteriorated in recent years.

Hu is also known for his inflammatory Twitter output, particularly his scathing criticism of President Donald Trump and his administration.

Tiananmen Square commemorations are the latest addition to frosty U.S.-China ties, not least because Beijing is currently pushing for a new national security law in Hong Kong that would effectively criminalize anti-government dissent.

The U.S. has repeatedly backed anti-government protesters and criticized Hong Kong and Chinese suppression of the movement. But Chinese officials and media have accused the Trump administration of hypocrisy given its uncompromising response to civil unrest at home.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo met with Tiananmen Square survivors on Tuesday, one day after Trump reportedly ordered police to use tear gas, rubber bullets and batons to clear a large peaceful demonstration near the White House so he could walk to a nearby vandalized church and pose with a Bible.

Trump has also threatened to call in the military to quell the protests and posted tweets warning that "when the looting starts, the shooting starts" and threatening White House protesters with "vicious dogs" and "ominous weapons."