The request has not yet been approved by the State Department, according to the sources, who spoke to CNN on the condition of anonymity.
An “authorized departure” gives employees and families in the United States embassy and consulates the option to leave China for a period of time until they feel safe to return, but is not a mandatory evacuation under an “ordered departure.”
China is one of the few places in the world still adhering to a zero-Covid strategy, in which it aims to stamp out all cases within its borders.
Since the arrival of Omicron, authorities have seen several outbreaks across the country, prompting local officials to implement mass testing, strict lockdowns, contact tracing and new restrictions on movement. In some cities, people caught in snap lockdowns have been forced to spend days in office buildings and shopping malls until everybody inside tested negative.
Currently, the US diplomatic mission in China has an agreement with the Chinese Foreign Ministry to allow parents to stay with minor children in case of quarantine. However, there is growing concern China’s national health agency could potentially override that agreement.
While there have been no incidents of diplomats being separated from their children, the diplomatic source said US officials in China fear that could change amid the spread of the highly contagious Omicron variant, which could strain the country’s health care system and hospitals.
“People are not scared of getting sick,” the diplomatic source said. “What has people spooked is that Omicron is more contagious and if it were to spike in the way we’ve seen in other countries, it could lead to even stricter and more unpredictable measures here.
“We are not questioning China’s safety in containing Covid, but we do want to prevent people from being thrown into the system should it become overrun.”
On Wednesday, the Chinese government expressed “serious concern and dissatisfaction” over the US embassy’s request and questioned the logic behind the decision.
“China’s epidemic control and prevention measures are precise and scientific,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said at a regular news briefing in Beijing. “They are effective and have protected foreign citizens in China.”
“China is undoubtedly the safest country in the world right now,” he added. “Evacuating from the safest place will only greatly increase the risk of those US personnel getting infected.”
The US and several other countries have announced a diplomatic boycott of the Games, meaning they will not send government officials to attend, in protest of the alleged human rights abuses in China’s western region of Xinjiang.
As of Wednesday, 10 cities in China have reported local Omicron cases, including Shanghai and Beijing.
Since the start of the month, 42 people entering the Beijing Olympics bubble, referred to by officials as a “closed loop,” have tested positive — including four Games-related personnel who were already inside the loop, officials said on Wednesday. It’s not clear whether they were recent arrivals or if any local transmission occurred within the closed loop.
A State Department spokesperson said the operating status at US Mission in China has not changed.
“Any…
Read More: US Embassy in China asks State Department to let diplomats leave over Covid restrictions