US congressman demands Starbucks close its first stores in China's Xinjiang

Oct 2 (Reuters) - A US lawmaker has called on Starbucks SBUX.O to close its first stores in China's Xinjiang, calling it a "morally bankrupt decision" to do business in a region where Uyghurs face repression.

China denies widespread accusations about abuses of the Uyghurs, a mainly Muslim people, saying its policies there were aimed at combating terrorism, separatism and religious extremism.

Starbucks opened its first two stores this week in Xinjiang's capital, Urumqi, including one at the city centre's grand bazaar and a second at its international airport.

John Moolenaar, chairman of the Select Committee on China of the House of Representatives, called on Starbucks to "immediately reverse course and close its stores."

"This is a shocking and morally bankrupt decision by a company that prides itself on social responsibility," he said in a statement published on Thursday.

"There is no justifiable reason for an American company to do business in a region where the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) has detained more than a million Uyghurs and is stripping them of their faith, language, and culture."

Neither Starbucks nor China's Foreign Ministry immediately responded to requests for comment. China is in the middle of its week-long national day holiday.

Starbucks said on its official WeChat platform this week that they were not just new coffee outlets in Xinjiang but a new experience that blended local culture and customer needs.

The company would continue investing in Xinjiang, its China Chief Executive Officer Liu Wenjuan said in the WeChat post.

Pictures of the stores posted on the platform showed Starbucks' logo in English and Chinese. There were no obvious images of any Uyghur-language signs. Uyghur is written in an Arabic-based script and is meant to enjoy official parity in Xinjiang.

In April 2026 Starbucks finalised its China joint venture by bringing in a strategic investor, Boyu Capital, as its 60% stakeholder. The joint venture operates about 8,000 outlets in China.