"Yesterday, the State Department submitted its first annual report to the Congress regarding United States access to Tibet," Palladino said. "The report concludes that the Chinese government ‘systematically impedes travel to the Tibetan Autonomous Region and Tibetan areas outside the Tibetan Autonomous Region for US officials, journalists and tourists.What we seek here is reciprocity; reciprocity from China regarding open access that China enjoys in the United States."
The report to the US Congress was mandated by the Reciprocal Access to Tibet Act, which passed with bipartisan support in December 2018.
READ MORE: US Senate Approves Resolution Demanding China to Respect Human Rights in Tibet
The Act seeks to promote access to Tibet for U.S. diplomats and other officials, journalists and other citizens by denying U.S. entry for Chinese officials deemed responsible for restricting access to Tibet.
China has opposed the report, saying it is full of bias and totally ignores the facts, according to media reports.
Tibet is the only region for which China requires diplomats and journalists to seek special access.
