"This is something that we are considering," he told reporters of the option of not sending government officials to represent Washington at competitions while still letting American athletes participate.

This track should arouse the ire of China, which has reacted strongly in the past to the mention of any form of boycott.

It could therefore lead to a new bout of diplomatic tensions between the two superpowers, just days after the virtual summit between President Biden and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping supposed to establish "safeguards" to prevent their numerous differences from degenerating into conflict. .

For months, the US government has been looking for the best way to position itself with regard to this popular and global event organized by a country it accuses of perpetrating a "genocide" against Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang, in the northwest. from China.

Several human rights organizations accuse Beijing of having interned at least one million Muslims in Xinjiang in "re-education camps".

The Chinese authorities systematically denounce "the interference" of Westerners who condemn this situation, assuring that they are "vocational training centers" to support employment and combat religious extremism.

"Total boycott"

So far, when questioned about its decision, the Biden administration has kicked in, saying it wanted to coordinate with allies of the United States for a "common approach".

The secretary of the Communist Party of Beijing, Cai Qi, during the welcoming ceremony of the Olympic flame for the Winter Games scheduled for February 2022 in the Chinese capital Noel Celis AFP / Archives

But the deadline is approaching: winter sports have an appointment from February 4 to 20 in the Chinese capital.

The Washington Post reported on Tuesday that the Democratic president is expected to "approve" by the end of November the diplomatic boycott option formally recommended to him by his advisers.

The article in the American daily immediately aroused positive reactions from the many elected officials from all sides who pleaded for such a solution, but also the protests of those who would like to go further.

In recent months, resolutions and bills have multiplied in the United States Congress, some aimed at punishing companies that agree to sponsor the Beijing Olympics, others calling on the International Olympic Committee to move the competition to another country.

The diplomatic boycott was proposed in May by the Democratic President of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi.

Several elected officials had supported it, some, such as Republican Senator Mitt Romney, having even introduced legislative amendments to impose it.

"I am hopeful that the government will send a strong message to the Chinese Communist Party without punishing American athletes," said the latter on Tuesday.

Some senators have said they believe in recent days that the White House will decide in this direction before Congress has to legislate.

However, several Republican hawks urge Joe Biden to announce an outright boycott of sports competition by officials but also athletes.

"The United States must institute a total and comprehensive boycott of the Beijing Winter Games. The threat to our athletes and the crimes against humanity committed by China leave us no other choice," he added. Hammered Thursday Senator Tom Cotton at a press conference on the subject.

The American Olympic Committee is opposed to such a radical solution, explaining that the Games are important after months of a pandemic.

He ruled that the boycott of the Moscow Games in 1980, by the United States and some sixty other countries, and of those of Los Angeles in 1984, by the Soviet Union and its allies, had shown that using these events as a "political tool" was a "mistake".

© 2021 AFP