British diplomats are apparently “fuming” after Hugo Swire, a senior Foreign Office official, was snubbed by CY Leung and Carrie Lam during a trip to Hong Kong earlier this month.

Swire visited Hong Kong on the tail-end of a trip to China but both the Chief Executive and the Chief Secretary refused to meet with him, sparking outrage among British officials.

According to one source, who spoke to the South China Morning Post, the snub was ‘unheard’ of and a huge breach of diplomatic protocol.

Swire later said upon his return to Britain that Beijing feared that him meeting with CY Leung would spark a new wave of protests and that it was a very ‘sensitive time’ for him to visit the former colony.

This comes just after Swire made headlines with his pro-Beijing comments regarding democracy in Hong Kong last week. The Foreign Office minister suggested that Beijing’s plans for electoral reform are “better than nothing” and urged Hong Kong’s Legislative Council to consider accepting the reforms.

Source: SMCP

Warning：The use of any news and articles published on eChinacities.com without written permission from eChinacities.com constitutes copyright infringement, and legal action can be taken.

Keywords: British Foreign Minister Hugo Swire Snubbed by Hong Kong Top Officials