US adds Pakistan, China to its blacklist for religious freedom violations

File photo of Mike Pompeo.

Washington: Pakistan, China and Saudi Arabia are among countries added to a US blacklist of nations that violate religious freedom, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Tuesday.

Pompeo said he has designated Pakistan, China, Saudi Arabia, Myanmar, Eritrea, Iran, North Korea, Sudan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan as "Countries of Particular Concern" in a congressionally mandated annual report.

The development comes a year after the US State Department put Pakistan on a watchlist without legal consequences.