Beijing’s top overseeing Hong Kong affairs Xia Baolong slammed the United States for its tyrannical and bullying imposition of tariffs, which aims to “claim the life of Hong Kong.”
Xia made the remarks during a video speech at the National Security Education Day opening ceremony at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre on Tuesday -- the 10th anniversary of National Security Education Day.
Xia criticized the US’s suppression of the SAR, including the sanctions against Hong Kong officials and the “preposterous” accumulated tariffs as high as 145 percent on the city -- a tariff-free port.
“[Such an act] is brutal and shameless, enabling the world to see the US’s hostility toward Hong Kong's success,” said Xia, Director of the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office.
“They are not trying to collect our taxes, they want to claim our lives,” he added.
Xia also said Hong Kong faced serious national security challenges over the past decade, adding the 2019 social unrest was an “indelible scar” in the city’s history.
“We must never forget the painful lessons of the unrest and remain high vigilance, keeping the alarm bells ringing,” he said, urging residents to reject sympathy for “anti-China agitators.”
The official dismissed concerns that economic growth alone ensures stability, arguing that prosperity without security proves fragile.
Xia also emphasized collective responsibility for national security, particularly urging youth to align personal ambitions with Hong Kong’s development and national interests.
“Every Hong Kong resident is both a beneficiary and guardian -- there are no bystanders,” he said.
The Beijing official appealed to Hong Kong’s business leaders to “anchor their enterprises in the city” amid the US pressure while warning that “those who betray the nation will meet their deserved fate,” dismissing US pressure as ineffective.
“The sky won't fall from trade wars,” he said, calling attempts to appease America “profoundly naive.”
The director of the central government's liaison office Zheng Yanxiong affirmed full support for the SAR in implementing Beijing's directives on safeguarding national security while pursuing quality development.
Warning against complacency, he stressed: "Hong Kong's greatest peril lies in forgetting the 2019 turmoil lessons and begging mercy from adversaries."
Dong Jingwei, head of Beijing's Office for Safeguarding National Security in Hong Kong, reinforced the message: “Those who threaten our security will face resolute counterstrikes.” He noted improved legal safeguards since the 2019 unrest but cautioned that risks endure.
(Ayra Wang)
