White House remains ambiguous about inviting Hong Kong leader John Lee to Apec meeting
- The US sanctioned Lee, Hong Kong’s chief executive, in 2020 for his role in the crackdown on political rights in the city
- Beijing has demanded Washington lift the sanction and invite Lee to the summit, during which the US also hopes for a possible Joe Biden-Xi Jinping meeting
Responding to questions after The Washington Post reported that US President Joe Biden would not invite Lee, administration officials have avoided language suggesting that all top Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation leaders would be invited to the meeting.
In 2020, Lee – then Hong Kong’s security secretary – was one of several officials sanctioned by the US for curtailing Hongkongers’ political rights. He became chief executive in 2022.
According to the sanctions, Lee was “designated for being involved in coercing, arresting, detaining, or imprisoning individuals under the authority of the National Security Law”.
![US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said only that the US would “make sure that attendance [at Apec] is in keeping with the US laws and regulations”. Photo: EPA-EFE](https://img.i-scmp.com/cdn-cgi/image/fit=contain,width=1024,format=auto/sites/default/files/d8/images/canvas/2023/07/29/a8ca6394-cac9-49bb-a22e-555876bd5ab8_7e28f2d8.jpg "US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said only that the US would “make sure that attendance [at Apec] is in keeping with the US laws and regulations”. Photo: EPA-EFE")
Asked whether Lee would be barred from attending, John Kirby, the National Security Council spokesman, said on Friday that the US would “make sure that attendance is in keeping with the US laws and regulations.”