Beijing expresses 'strong dissatisfaction' with G-7 on Hong Kong

G-7 leaders meeting in France had backed Hong Kong's autonomy as laid out in a 1984 agreement between Britain and China, and called for calm in the protest-hit city. PHOTO: AP

BEIJING (AFP) - Beijing on Tuesday (Aug 27) voiced "strong dissatisfaction" with a joint statement issued by the Group of Seven (G-7) leaders, who backed Hong Kong's autonomy and called for calm after months of civil unrest.

"We express our strong dissatisfaction and resolute opposition to the statement made by the leaders of the G-7 Summit on Hong Kong affairs," said Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang at a press briefing in Beijing.

G-7 leaders meeting in France on Monday backed Hong Kong's autonomy as laid out in a 1984 agreement between Britain and China, and called for calm in the protest-hit city.

But Beijing has repeatedly accused foreign governments of interfering over Hong Kong, and Mr Geng said on Tuesday that the G-7 was "meddling" and "harbouring evil intentions".

"We have repeatedly stressed that Hong Kong's affairs are purely China's internal affairs and that no foreign government, organisation or individual has the right to intervene," he said.

Hong Kong has been hit by more than two months of protests over an attempt by its Beijing-backed government to pass an extradition Bill which opponents saw as a huge dent in Hong Kong's autonomy.

It has since morphed into a wider call for greater democratic freedoms.

In the G-7 statement, the leaders of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States called for calm in the tense city.

"The G-7 reaffirms the existence and the importance of the 1984 Sino-British agreement on Hong Kong and calls for avoiding violence," it said.

China has previously accused former colonial power Britain of interfering in the semi-autonomous Chinese territory, which the British handed over to China in 1997.

Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.