Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam (林鄭月娥) yesterday called on the US to stop interfering in the territory, and that she had discussed COVID-19 controls and economic relief with mainland Chinese officials during her three-day trip to Beijing.
Speaking to reporters in Beijing, Lam said that the Chinese government would support Hong Kong’s competitiveness, as well as tech innovation in the Asian financial hub.
Lam said that whoever wins the US presidential election should end US interference in the internal affairs of the territory and China overall.
Photo: Reuters
She accused the administration of US President Donald Trump of repeatedly interfering over the past year, citing US sanctions on officials, including herself, and the suspension of special trading conditions previously granted to Hong Kong.
“That is totally unreasonable,” she said at the news conference. “I hope that they will come back to normalcy and accept that the relationship has to be built on mutual respect and cooperation.”
The US earlier this year took issue with China’s enactment of a new National Security Law.
The Trump administration backed democracy activists who said that the legislation ended the “one country, two systems” framework under which Hong Kong is part of China, but given a high degree of autonomy over local affairs.
Lam said that the legislation has been an effective deterrent after pitched battles between demonstrators and police during protests last year.
“Hong Kong has recovered its stability and has not seen any large-scale violent incidents,” Lam said. “With this stable environment, we can focus on economic development and improving people’s lives.”
Lam was praised by Chinese Vice Premier Han Zheng (韓正), who said that her government had “overcome all kinds of difficulties and dealt with the challenges.”
Hong Kong was wracked by protests last year demanding fully democratic elections and opposing China’s expanding influence in the territory’s affairs.
Han, one of seven members of the Chinese Communist Party’s top leadership body, praised Lam’s government for its handling of the pandemic, easing the economic burden on the population, implementing the national security legislation and protecting the stability of Hong Kong.
The US government has signed defense cooperation agreements with Japan and the Philippines to boost the deterrence capabilities of countries in the first island chain, a report by the National Security Bureau (NSB) showed. The main countries on the first island chain include the two nations and Taiwan. The bureau is to present the report at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee tomorrow. The US military has deployed Typhon missile systems to Japan’s Yamaguchi Prefecture and Zambales province in the Philippines during their joint military exercises. It has also installed NMESIS anti-ship systems in Japan’s Okinawa
‘WIN-WIN’: The Philippines, and central and eastern European countries are important potential drone cooperation partners, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung said Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) in an interview published yesterday confirmed that there are joint ventures between Taiwan and Poland in the drone industry. Lin made the remark in an exclusive interview with the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister paper). The government-backed Taiwan Excellence Drone International Business Opportunities Alliance and the Polish Chamber of Unmanned Systems on Wednesday last week signed a memorandum of understanding in Poland to develop a “non-China” supply chain for drones and work together on key technologies. Asked if Taiwan prioritized Poland among central and eastern European countries in drone collaboration, Lin
NO CONFIDENCE MOTION? The premier said that being toppled by the legislature for defending the Constitution would be a democratic badge of honor for him Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) yesterday announced that the Cabinet would not countersign the amendments to the local revenue-sharing law passed by the Legislative Yuan last month. Cho said the decision not to countersign the amendments to the Act Governing the Allocation of Government Revenues and Expenditures (財政收支劃分法) was made in accordance with the Constitution. “The decision aims to safeguard our Constitution,” he said. The Constitution stipulates the president shall, in accordance with law, promulgate laws and issue mandates with the countersignature of the head of the Executive Yuan, or with the countersignatures of both the head of the Executive Yuan and ministers or
BACK TO WORK? Prosecutors said they are considering filing an appeal, while the Hsinchu City Government said it has applied for Ann Kao’s reinstatement as mayor The High Court yesterday found suspended Hsinchu mayor Ann Kao (高虹安) not guilty of embezzling assistant fees, reducing her sentence to six months in prison commutable to a fine from seven years and four months. The verdict acquitted Kao of the corruption charge, but found her guilty of causing a public official to commit document forgery. The High Prosecutors’ Office said it is reviewing the ruling and considering whether to file an appeal. The Taipei District Court in July last year sentenced Kao to seven years and four months in prison, along with a four-year deprivation of civil rights, for contravening the Anti-Corruption
RSS