Donald Trump Expresses Pessimism Over Jimmy Lai's Release
President Donald Trump stated that China's hatred for imprisoned pro-democracy activist Jimmy Lai makes his release unlikely before an upcoming meeting with Xi Jinping.
Donald Trump stated that the Chinese government harbors a "great level of hatred" for Jimmy Lai, the founder of the defunct Apple Daily newspaper. Lai is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence in Hong Kong for sedition and foreign collusion following pro-democracy protests.
Trump noted that in previous discussions, President Xi Jinping explained that Lai's leadership of the movement caused the Chinese government "tremendous distress." While Trump successfully secured the release of underground church founder Ezra Jin after raising the case with Xi in May, he described Lai as "a tough one" for the Chinese leader.
The U.S. president is scheduled to meet with President Xi next week at the Apec gathering in Shenzhen, China.
