The Chinese regime said on Friday it will stop recognizing British National (Overseas) passports as travel and identity documents in response to Britain’s offer of a pathway to citizenship to millions of Hong Kong residents. This came just hours after the British government announced that a special new visa will be opened for Hong Kong BN(O) status holders on Sunday. The scheme, first announced last July after Beijing’s imposition of a draconian national security law for Hong Kong, allows BN(O) status holders to live, study, and work in the UK for five years and eventually apply for citizenship. Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he was “immensely proud” of having introduced the new scheme. “In doing so we have honoured our profound ties of history and friendship with the people of Hong Kong, and we have stood up for freedom and autonomy—values both the UK and Hong Kong hold dear,” he …