BEIJING: China warned Western nations on Thursday they would “pay the price” for a diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. Washington announced its boycott earlier in the week, saying it was prompted by widespread rights abuses by China and what it sees as a “genocide” against the Muslim Uyghur minority in Xinjiang. Australia, Britain and Canada followed suit in a flurry of diplomatic bonhomie on Wednesday. The boycott stopped short of not sending athletes but nonetheless infuriated Beijing, which hinted at retaliation on Thursday. “The US, Australia, Britain and Canada’s use o…