Today, The United States declared that China is committing genocide with the abusive treatment of the country’s Uyghur population in the Xinjiang region. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo released a statement condemning the atrocities and blaming the CCP and People’s Republic of China.

Pompeo said, “I have determined that the People’s Republic of China is committing genocide and crimes against humanity in Xinjiang, China, targeting Uyghur Muslims and members of other ethnic and religious minority groups. These acts are an affront to the Chinese people and to civilized nations everywhere. The People’s Republic of China and the CCP must be held accountable.”

The Daily Wire reports:

“I believe this genocide is ongoing, and that we are witnessing the systematic attempt to destroy Uighurs by the Chinese party-state,” Pompeo said, according to The New York Times. Chinese officials are “engaged in the forced assimilation and eventual erasure of a vulnerable ethnic and religious minority group.”

The determination kicks off a series of follow-up actions within the U.S. State Department and may force President-elect Joe Biden to take a tougher line on China after he assumes office on Wednesday. As the Times reported:

The determination of atrocities is a rare action on the part of the State Department, and could lead the United States to impose more sanctions against China under the new administration of President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr., who said last year through a spokesman that the policies by Beijing amounted to “genocide.” Other nations or international institutions could follow suit in formally criticizing China over its treatment of its minority Muslims and taking punitive measures. The determination also prompts certain reviews within the State Department.

The Chinese government, controlled by the Chinese Communist Party, is generally secretive about its operations in its northwest territory, especially as its operations relate to the local Uyghur population and other ethnic minorities. The state has claimed that massive camps set up in the region are used as education centers to help Uyghurs assimilate to Chinese culture.

Eyewitnesses have rebuked the Chinese government’s claims that the camps are meant to help Uyghurs assimilate. Instead, the real purpose behind the camps is to give Chinese officials free rein to commit atrocities such as abuse, sterilization, and preform violent abortions of pregnant Uyghur women.

The move comes after years of escalation between the United States and China.

Senator Lindsey Graham called the move “bold and necessary” for the State Department.