Beijing, July 22 (RHC)-- Beijing will respond strongly to the closure of the Asian country's consulate in Houston, Texas by giving its staff 72 hours to leave the country, Bloomberg reports.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin has called the U.S. government's move "an unprecedented escalation" amid the growing tension dominating relations between Washington and Beijing, which have festered in recent months due to the intense trade and technology war, disputes over pandemic management and the new Chinese security law regarding Hong Kong.

"China strongly condemns this move, which is so outrageous and unjustified that it will sabotage Chinese-American relations," Wenbin said.  "We urge the United States to immediately reverse its erroneous decision.  Otherwise, China will adopt the legitimate and necessary responses," the Chinese diplomat added.

According to the representative of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, the order to close the Chinese Consulate in Texas was issued unilaterally by the U.S. side.  If the White House does not "revoke this erroneous decision," Beijing "will react with strong countermeasures," Wenbin warned.

In addition, the spokesman denounced that Chinese diplomatic missions and their personnel have recently been subjected to bomb and death threats.

Wenbin's statements come hours after China's Foreign Ministry reported that the U.S. government had ordered that Beijing close its Consulate General in Houston within 72 hours. 

The spokesperson of the U.S. State Department, Morgan Ortagus, has attempted to justify the measure by saying that it is aimed at "protecting the intellectual property and private information of the United States."