Trump Says He Hopes To "Save" Hong Kong Democrat Jimmy Lai
"I'm going to do everything I can to save him," Trump told Fox News Radio in an interview. "We'll see what we can do ... we're going to do everything we can."
Lai, 77, has pleaded not guilty to charges under Hong Kong's national security law of conspiracy to collude with foreign forces, as well as to a separate charge of conspiracy to publish seditious material. He has been held in solitary confinement for more than 1,500 days since December 2020.
Liu Pengyu, the spokesperson for China's embassy in Washington, said Lai had been "a key orchestrator and participant in anti-China, destabilizing activities in Hong Kong."
"We strongly oppose external forces using judicial cases as a pretext to interfere in China's internal affairs or to smear and undermine Hong Kong's rule of law," he said.
Trump has said he would raise Lai's case as part of negotiations with China over trade and tariffs.
On Monday, the U.S. and China extended a tariff truce for another 90 days, staving off triple-digit duties on each other's goods. On Tuesday, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said trade officials from the two sides will meet again within the next two or three months to discuss the future of the economic relationship.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
NDTV
11 minutes ago
- NDTV
MK Stalin To Boycott Governor's Independence Day Reception Over "Anti-Tamil Nadu Acts"
Chennai: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin will boycott Governor RN Ravi's customary "At Home" Independence Day reception this evening, marking a sharp escalation in the state government's confrontation with Raj Bhavan. The government has cited what it calls the Governor's "anti-Tamil Nadu acts" as the reason for the snub. In a coordinated move, Higher Education Minister K Ponmudy will also skip two upcoming university convocations, amplifying the ruling DMK's protest. At the heart of the standoff is the Governor's decision to refer to President Droupadi Murmu a Bill passed by the Assembly to establish Kalaignar University in honour of the late Chief Minister M Karunanidhi. The DMK sees this as a deliberate attempt to delay assent, undermining the legislative authority of the state. This comes against the backdrop of repeated clashes over Bills passed by the Assembly but kept pending at Raj Bhavan - a dispute that earlier saw the Supreme Court step in and declare several such Bills "deemed to have been assented to." The Supreme Court had also fixed a timeline with a maximum of three months to dispose of bills. It also ruled Governors and the President do not have any discretionary powers. The latest flashpoint was Governor Ravi's Independence Day address, in which he praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Centre's achievements extensively, but offered no positive mention of the Tamil Nadu government or Mr Stalin. Towards the end, he flagged "very serious challenges" in Tamil Nadu - including alleged educational and social discrimination against the poor, suicide rates double the national average, sharp rises in synthetic drug abuse among youth with "alleged patronage of the power-that-be," and a steep increase in sexual offences against women and children. Responding sharply, Tamil Nadu Local Administration Minister KN Nehru accused the Governor of acting as an "agent of Nagpur" and spreading baseless allegations without contributing anything to the Tamil language or the state's welfare. He said the Governor's statement, coming just a day after a PhD scholar refused to accept her degree from him in protest, was a political outburst fuelled by frustration over being boycotted by DMK allies at the Independence Day reception. Mr Nehru charged that the Governor's claims on crime and governance ignored official statistics showing Tamil Nadu's economic growth at 11.19% and the state's leadership in education, gender equality, and entrepreneurship. He said the Centre had neglected Tamil Nadu's legitimate demands for disaster relief and education funding, while pushing "Aryan imposition" and divisive schemes. "Reading the Governor's statement would make even (Union Home Minister) Amit Shah laugh," Mr Nehru quipped, adding that the people of Tamil Nadu "do not give him the respect due to a Governor" because he functions like "a political adversary" rather than a constitutional head. Tamil Nadu Raj Bhavan is yet to respond to the boycott or the Minister's remarks.
Indian Express
11 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Trump and Putin to meet in Alaska for high-stakes summit on Russia-Ukraine war
US President Donald Trump is meeting face-to-face with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday for a high-stakes summit that could determine not only the trajectory of the war in Ukraine but also the fate of European security. The meeting between the two leaders is scheduled for 11:30 am Alaska time (3:30 pm ET), followed by a joint press conference. They will convene at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, which is home to around 30,000 service members, their families, and civilian staff. The base lies roughly 700 miles from the Russian border. The sit-down offers Trump a chance to prove to the world that he is both a master dealmaker and a global peacemaker. He and his allies have cast him as a heavyweight negotiator who can find a way to bring the slaughter to a close — something he used to boast he could do quickly. For Putin, a summit with Trump offers a long-sought opportunity to try to negotiate a deal that would cement Russia's gains, block Kyiv's bid to join the NATO military alliance and eventually pull Ukraine back into Moscow's orbit. There are significant risks for Trump. By bringing Putin onto US soil, the president is giving Russia's leader the validation he desires after his ostracization following his invasion of Ukraine 3 1/2 years ago. The exclusion of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy from the summit also deals a heavy blow to the West's policy of 'nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine' and invites the possibility that Trump could agree to a deal that Ukraine does not want. Any success is far from assured, especially as Russia and Ukraine remain far apart in their demands for peace. Putin has long resisted any temporary ceasefire, linking it to a halt in Western arms supplies and a freeze on Ukraine's mobilization efforts — conditions rejected by Kyiv and its Western allies. Trump said that even more important than his summit with Putin would be a subsequent meeting that also includes Zelenskyy, something he suggested could even happen before he departs Alaska — a possibility that Russia hasn't agreed to. Trump said in a Fox News radio interview Thursday that he didn't know if they would get 'an immediate ceasefire' but he wanted a broad peace deal done quickly. That seemingly echoes Putin's longtime argument that Russia favors a comprehensive deal to end the fighting, reflecting its demands, not a temporary halt to hostilities. The Kremlin said Trump and Putin will first sit down for a one-on-one discussion, followed by the two delegations meeting and talks continuing over 'a working breakfast.' They are then expected to hold a joint press conference. In the days leading up to the summit, set for a military base near Anchorage, Trump described it as 'really a feel-out meeting.' But he's also warned of 'very severe consequences' for Russia if Putin doesn't agree to end the war and said that though Putin might bully other leaders, 'He's not going to mess around with me.' Trump's repeated suggestions that a deal would likely involve 'some swapping of territories' — which disappointed Ukraine and European allies — along with his controversial history with Putin have some skeptical about what kind of agreement can be reached. Ian Kelly, a retired career foreign service officer who served as the US ambassador to Georgia during the Obama and first Trump administrations, said he sees 'no upside for the US, only an upside for Putin.' 'The best that can happen is nothing, and the worst that can happen is that Putin entices Trump into putting more pressure on Zelenskyy,' Kelly said. George Beebe, the former director of the CIA's Russia analysis team who is now affiliated with the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, said there's a serious risk of blown expectations or misunderstandings for a high-level summit pulled together so quickly. 'That said, I doubt President Trump would be going into a meeting like this unless there had been enough work done behind the scenes for him to feel that there is a decent chance that something concrete will come out of it,' Beebe said. Zelenskyy has time and again cast doubts on Putin's willingness to negotiate in good faith. His European allies, who've held increasingly urgent meetings with US leaders over the past week, have stressed the need for Ukraine to be involved in any peace talks. Political commentators in Moscow, meanwhile, have relished that the summit leaves Ukraine and its European allies on the sidelines. Dmitry Suslov, a pro-Kremlin voice, expressed hope that the summit will 'deepen a trans-Atlantic rift and weaken Europe's position as the toughest enemy of Russia.' European leaders who consulted with Trump this week said the president assured them he would prioritize trying to achieve a ceasefire. Foreign governments will be watching closely to see how Trump reacts to Putin, likely gauging what the interaction might mean for their own dealings with the US president, who has eschewed traditional diplomacy for his own transactional approach to relationships. The meeting comes as the war has caused heavy losses on both sides and drained resources. Ukraine has held on far longer than some initially expected since the February 2022 invasion, but it is straining to hold off Russia's much larger army, grappling with bombardments of its cities and fighting for every inch on the over 600-mile (1,000-kilometer) front line. Andrea Kendall-Taylor, a senior fellow and director of the Transatlantic Security Program at the Center for a New American Security, said US antagonists like China, Iran and North Korea will be paying attention to Trump's posture to see 'whether or not the threats that he continues to make against Putin are indeed credible.' 'Or, if has been the past track record, he continues to back down and look for ways to wiggle out of the kind of threats and pressure he has promised to apply,' said Kendall-Taylor, who is also a former senior intelligence officer. While some have objected to the location of the summit, Trump has said he thought it was 'very respectful' of Putin to come to the US instead of a meeting in Russia. Sergei Markov, a pro-Kremlin Moscow-based analyst, observed that the choice of Alaska as the summit's venue 'underlined the distancing from Europe and Ukraine.' Being on a military base allows the leaders to avoid protests and meet more securely, but the location carries its own significance because of its history and location. Alaska, which the US purchased from Russia in 1867, is separated from Russia at its closest point by just 3 miles (less than 5 kilometers) and the international date line. Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson was crucial to countering the Soviet Union during the Cold War. It continues to play a role today, as planes from the base still intercept Russian aircraft that regularly fly into US airspace.
News18
20 minutes ago
- News18
Chinas economy lags in July under pressure from tariffs, weak property market
Bangkok, Aug 15 (AP) China's economy showed signs of slowing in July as factory output and retail sales slowed and housing prices dropped further, according to data released Friday. Uncertainty over tariffs on exports to the United States is still looming over the world's second-largest economy after President Donald Trump extended a pause in sharp hikes in import duties for 90 days, beginning Monday, following a 90-day pause that began in May. As officials worked toward a broader trade agreement, China reported earlier that its exports surged 7.2% in July year-on-year, while its imports grew at the fastest pace in a year, as businesses rushed to take advantage of the truce in Trump's trade war with Beijing. But that also reflected a lower base for comparison, and manufacturers have slowed investments, hiring and production as they watch to see what comes. Chinese manufacturers also have ramped up shipments to Southeast Asia, Africa and other regions to help offset lost business in the US. Still, annual growth in industrial output fell to 5.7% in July from 6.8% in June, the National Bureau of Statistics said. Investments in factory equipment and other fixed assets rose a meager 1.6% in January-July, compared with 2.8% growth in the first half of the year. Property investments plunged 12% in the first seven months of the year, with residential housing investment dropping nearly 11%. The meltdown in the housing market hit just as the COVID-19 pandemic began, sapping one of the economy's main drivers of growth and causing dozens of developers to default on their debts. The crisis rippled throughout the economy, destroying jobs for millions of people. The government has sought to ensure that most housing that was paid for gets built, but sales remain weak despite a series of moves meant to entice families into back into the market. Since most Chinese families have their wealth tied up in property, the anemic housing market has been a major factor crimping consumer spending. In July, retail sales rose 3.7%, the slowest rate in seven months and down from a 4.8% increase in June. The unemployment rate rose to 5.2% from 5% as university graduates began looking for work. While consumer prices rose 0.4% in July from the month before, prices at the wholesale level slipped 3.6% from a year earlier in another indicator of relatively weak demand. (AP) SCY SCY view comments First Published: August 15, 2025, 11:15 IST Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
