PRESIDENT Donald Trump said he will raise the case of ex-media mogul Jimmy Lai (picture) as part of US trade talks with China, a move likely to antagonize Beijing just days before the two sides meet.
“I think talking about Jimmy Lai is a very good idea,” Trump said in a May 7 radio interview with Hugh Hewitt. “We’ll put it down, and we’ll put it down as part of the negotiation.”
The US and China have been mired in a tariff tit-for-tat initiated by the Trump administration. Negotiations between the two sides kick off this weekend in Switzerland, where US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer will meet with a Chinese delegation led by Vice Premier He Lifeng.
Trump has previously called for releasing Lai, including in an earlier interview with Hewitt, prompting the host to ask the Republican if any progress had been made on the issue.
“In the current climate of tensions, it’s unlikely,” said Hong Kong lawmaker Regina Ip, speaking in a personal capacity about the possibility of a deal to release Lai. “The importance of this case has diminished because of the much larger issues now on the table.”
Hong Kong judges are set to deliver a verdict on the national security case of Lai in the coming months. The septuagenarian faces life in prison under the Beijing-imposed national security law.
A conviction would likely drive another wedge between China and the US, and put the territory at risk of retaliation.
Lai, a democracy advocate, is accused of colluding with foreign forces to impose sanctions on Hong Kong and Chinese officials, charges he denied. He founded the now defunct pro-democracy paper Apple Daily.
“Hong Kong affairs are purely China’s internal affairs and brook no foreign interference,” said a spokesperson for China’s Foreign Ministry. “China firmly opposes any country’s use of judicial cases to interfere in China’s internal affairs and undermine the rule of law in Hong Kong.”
The Hong Kong government didn’t reply to a request for comment. –BLOOMBERG
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