Hong Kong chief executive Carrie Lam admitted that U.S. sanctions have caused inconveniences in day-to-day activities, specifically regarding credit card restrictions.
Lam told state-backed media «CTGN» in an interview that she faced restrictions on the usage of credit cards following sanctions issued by Washington against her and another 10 officials from her cabinet and mainland China.
Separately, an «SCMP» report citing unnamed sources said that Citigroup had moved to suspend credit card accounts associated with some of the sanctioned individuals.
«Hong Kong is a Ready Pawn for Them to do this Sort of Thing»
Despite the claimed inconveniences, Lam added that she was still honored to implement the national security law for the Beijing central government and that neither she nor other officials would be intimidated.
«By now I think it is quite clear that all this is part of a ploy by the US administration for their self-serving interest,» Lam said.
«Hong Kong is a ready pawn for them to do this sort of thing because we are an open society and we have a small portion of people who tend to be more radical and critical of the government and of the mainland.»
Call for More Condemnation
In the report, Lam also called for more condemnation against any acts that obstruct the implementation of the security law.
«Any such acts of sanctions against officials, whether in the HKSAR government or in the Central People's Government, simply for the purpose that they are defending their country's national security, I think such acts of attacks or sanctions should be condemned by us, by the people of Hong Kong,» she said. «[A]nd I think even internationally.»
This is not the first time Lam has shrugged off issues of asset risks associated with the U.S. Last month, she publicly said that she had not assets in the world’s largest economy and that she did not «particularly like going to the U.S.».
