Former Hong Kong media boss Jimmy Lai Chee-ying has admitted to connecting three ex-US officials with the Taiwanese government to offer advice on foreign relations and strengthen ties with Washington, while denying claims he acted as a “middleman” to harm mainland China’s interests. Lai also said on Thursday that he had relayed suggestions from two…
Former Hong Kong media boss Jimmy Lai Chee-ying has admitted to connecting three ex-US officials with the Taiwanese government to offer advice on foreign relations and strengthen ties with Washington, while denying claims he acted as a “middleman” to harm mainland China’s interests. Lai also said on Thursday that he had relayed suggestions from two…
Former media boss Jimmy Lai Chee-ying has denied colluding with a retired US diplomat to allow Washington’s intervention in Hong Kong affairs, but said he had maintained contact with the ex-official as he valued his advice and considered their friendship “beneficial” despite the national security law. Lai told his high-profile trial on Tuesday that James…
Former media boss Jimmy Lai Chee-ying returns to the witness box in Hong Kong on Tuesday to explain his communications with associates and friends after the Beijing-imposed national security law came into effect on June 30, 2020, as his testimony enters its fourth week. The 77-year-old has pleaded not guilty to two charges of conspiring…
Former media boss Jimmy Lai Chee-ying returns to West Kowloon Court in Hong Kong on Monday to testify for a fourth week in his high-profile trial, answering questions over his state of mind after the enactment of the Beijing-decreed national security law on June 30, 2020. The 77-year-old has spent 12 days in the witness…
Former media boss Jimmy Lai Chee-ying has conceded he was “too optimistic” to have once believed in Hong Kong’s future as a financial hub under the national security law, while dismissing “presumptuous” allegations that he foresaw his arrest would trigger foreign intervention. Lai, 77, also said on Thursday he did not believe the central and…
Former media boss Jimmy Lai Chee-ying has said he opposed Washington’s decision to end Hong Kong’s preferential trade treatment after the national security law was adopted in 2020 as the US’ move would make the city more vulnerable to mainland Chinese “interference”. Lai told his high-profile national security trial on Tuesday that he had hoped…
Former Hong Kong media boss Jimmy Lai Chee-ying has sought to explain his past statements on the national security law expressed in articles and interviews with foreign media outlets before the legislation took effect, as he returned to court on Tuesday for a ninth day of verbal testimony in his high-profile trial. Lai, 77, has…
Former media boss Jimmy Lai Chee-ying has admitted he called on the US to use its “moral authority” to start a “war of competing values” against mainland China, as he underscored he was “desperate” for international support after Beijing imposed the national security law on Hong Kong. Lai told West Kowloon Court on Monday he…
Former Hong Kong media boss Jimmy Lai Chee-ying has provided details about his knowledge of a prosecution witness on the seventh day of his oral testimony in his national security trial. Lai, 77, has pleaded not guilty to two charges of conspiring to collude with foreign forces under the 2020 security law, and a third…