China warns UK, US against 'external interference' in Hong Kong affairs

China will not budge on opposing interference of “any” type in the internal affairs of Hong Kong by “some Western countries,” an apparent reference to the governments in Washington and London, a Chinese envoy has warned.

Liu Xiaoming, Beijing’s ambassador to London, made the warning during a press conference held in the British capital on Monday.

Beijing “would like to tell those external forces that the Chinese government remains steadfast... to oppose any” meddling in Hong Kong.

“Some Western countries have publicly supported extreme violent offenders, the US House of representatives adopted the so-called Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act to blatantly interfere in Hong Kong affairs, which are China’s internal affairs,” said Liu.

Hong Kong has been engulfed by mass protests since June. The public display of anger was initially set up over a controversial extradition bill.

The proposal was eventually shelved, but the protests have continued and taken on an increasingly violent form, with masked individuals vandalizing public and private property and attacking security forces and government buildings.

The anti-government demonstrators now want complete separation from mainland China.

Earlier in the day, police sought to dislodge several hundred protesters who occupied a university and had allegedly set fire to its main entrance.

The protesters have upgraded their arsenal from makeshift catapults and Molotov cocktails to bows and arrows taken from sports departments. They use them against riot police, who have resorted to tear gas and live rounds.

“The British government and the foreign affairs committee of the House of Commons published China-related reports making irresponsible remarks on Hong Kong. What is worse is that certain British politicians even planned to present (an) award to a chief propagandist for Hong Kong independence,” Liu said.

His comments came a few hours after a spokesman for British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said London was “seriously concerned by” what he called  the escalation of violence in Hong Kong, stressing that the British government supports the “right to protest.”

SS