China could take aim at American journalists in Hong Kong, if the U.S. doesn’t renew visas for Chinese journalists, Global Times Editor-in-Chief Hu Xijin said.

"From what I know, given that the US side hasn’t renewed visa of Chinese journalists, Chinese side has prepared for the worst scenario that all Chinese journalists have to leave the US,” Hu said Tuesday on Twitter. "If that’s the case, Chinese side will retaliate, including targeting US journalists based in HK.”

The U.S. State Department didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. The Global Times is a tabloid run by the People’s Daily, the flagship newspaper of the Communist Party. Hu‘s tweets have become closely watched after accurately forecasting previous moves by China’s government.