-拜登总统延长了针对香港居民的延期强制离境计划，该计划为目前在美国的香港人提供法律保护，这些保护将于2月5日到期。
-根据该计划，香港居民可以获得工作许可，这样他们就可以在美国合法生活和工作，同时受到临时人道主义保护的保护。任何在美国的香港人，如学生、游客或持有工作签证的雇员，都有资格，即使他们的签证已经过期。
-该计划是两年前制定的，因为北京加强了对香港反政府抗议活动、异议和民间社会活动的控制。
-在美国的香港活动人士和权利团体一直在敦促拜登政府延长推迟签证的时间。
-白宫没有提供估计，在该计划的扩展下，还有多少人将获得保护。
-北京经常批评美国在香港问题上的声明和行动是对中国内政的干涉，并在此前对推迟离境计划提出异议，称其试图操纵香港作为遏制中国的工具。
-在延长该计划时，拜登先生引用了2020年强加给香港的一项国家安全法，该法使北京在对该城市的异议人士进行监控时有了更大的把握，以及中国采取的其他步骤，美国总统称这些步骤侵蚀了人权。
-President Biden has extended the Deferred Enforced Departure program for Hong Kong residents, which offers legal protections to Hong Kongers currently in the U.S. Those protections were set to expire on Feb 5.
-Under the program, Hong Kong residents can receive work permits so they can live and work in the U.S. legally while they are covered by the temporary humanitarian protections. Any Hong Kongers in the U.S., such as students, tourists or employees on work visas, are eligible, even if their visas have expired.
-The program was instituted two years ago as Beijing tightened controls over antigovernment protests, dissent and civil society activism in Hong Kong.
-Hong Kong activists and rights groups in the U.S. have been urging the Biden administration to extend the deferral status.
-The White House didn’t provide an estimate of how many more people would gain protection under the program’s expansion.
-Beijing has routinely criticized U.S. statements and actions on Hong Kong as interference in China’s internal affairs and has previously taken exception to the deferred departure program, calling it an attempt to manipulate Hong Kong as a tool to contain China.
-In extending the program, Mr. Biden cited a 2020 national security law imposed on Hong Kong that gives Beijing a stronger hand in policing dissent in the city, and other steps China has taken that the U.S. president said erode human rights.