Exchanges between Hong Kong, Japan must align with China’s ‘dignity’: John Lee

All official exchanges between Hong Kong and Japan should respect the nation’s dignity and align with the benefits of Hongkongers, the city leader has said as he raised doubts over the effectiveness of such interactions amid an ongoing diplomatic dispute between Beijing and Tokyo.

Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu’s remarks came on Monday, after it was reported that the administration had called off several exchanges with the Japanese consulate in Hong Kong and postponed discussions.

“The extremely erroneous remarks [from the Japanese leader] have severely deteriorated the atmosphere for exchanges between China and Japan. It makes us doubt the effectiveness of many exchanges. We will closely monitor the development,” Lee said.

“Our arrangement must be aligned with the nation’s dignity and the benefits of Hongkongers.”

Lee sidestepped questions about whether official exchanges between his administration and the Japanese consulate had been halted, in spite of reports that they had.

According to Japanese news agency Kyodo, InvestHK, the city’s investment promotion agency, notified the country’s envoy that it would not take part in an event to promote business exchanges, originally scheduled for last Tuesday. The function was postponed but no alternative date was set.

The report also said a separate meeting planned for early next month between Japanese consul general Jun Miura and a Hong Kong government official on economic policy had been called off, while a local senior police official pulled out of another event hosted by the consulate in mid-December.