U.S. calls China 'thuggish regime' for singling out U.S. diplomat in Hong Kong

People watch the dots of laser pointers move across the facade of the Hong Kong Space Museum during a flash mob staged to denounce the authorities' claim that laser pointers were offensive weapons in Hong Kong, China, August 7, 2019. Picture taken with a slow shutter speed. REUTERS/Thomas Peter

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. State Department spokeswoman on Thursday called China a "thuggish regime" for disclosing the photographs and personal details of a U.S. diplomat who met with student leaders of Hong Kong's pro-democracy movement.

The denunciation was unusually sharp and came as tensions between Washington and Beijing surge over an expanding trade war and military rivalry in the western Pacific, among other disputes.