Mike Pompeo rebukes China’s ‘ludicrous’ claim US is behind Hong Kong protests

Protests are coming solely from the people of Hong Kong, who are asking their government to listen, Pompeo says

Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying had claimed the US ‘owes the world an explanation’

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Mike Pompeo was due to meet Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi on Wednesday. Photo: Bloomberg

Published: 11:45am, 31 Jul 2019Updated: 5:12pm, 31 Jul 2019

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has said it is “ludicrous” for China to claim the United States is behind the escalating protests in Hong Kong.

Pompeo rebuked Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying, who had claimed violent clashes in the city prompted by opposition to the Hong Kong government’s controversial extradition bill were “the work of the US”.

“I think the protests are solely the responsibility of the people of Hong Kong, and I think they are the ones that are demanding that their government listen to them and hear their voices,” Pompeo said late on Tuesday.

“It’s – I saw these remarks as well. It’s ludicrous on its face.”

Protests have occurred since June over the now-suspended bill, which would have allowed the transfer of suspects to jurisdictions with which Hong Kong has no extradition agreement, including mainland China.

Pompeo said he would meet Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on the sidelines of an Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) summit in Thailand on Wednesday to discuss “a whole host of issues”, without mentioning whether they would discuss Hong Kong specifically.