Washington Examiner

China exercises linguistic license to allow sanctioned Rubio into country

May 13, 2026Center Right

Secretary of State Marco Rubio is sanctioned by Beijing and officially unable to enter China but is allowed under a linguistic quirk of Mandarin. Rubio was sanctioned during his time in the Senate over his hawkish stance on China and work addressing human rights in China. Shortly after he was named secretary of state, however,…

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Linguistic workaround allows Marco Rubio, sanctioned by Beijing, to travel to China for the first time

The Guardian

May 13, 2026

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Linguistic workaround allows Marco Rubio, sanctioned by Beijing, to travel to China for the first time

Chinese government appears to be using the workaround of a different character to represent part of the secretary of state’s name, to allow him to visit the country for the upcoming Trump summitUS secretary of state Marco Rubio is heading to Beijing with president Donald Trump despite being under Chinese sanctions – a breakthrough that might have been made…

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