EU-erklæring om Hongkong

On 21 May, a spokesperson for China’s National People’s Congress announced that the upcoming NPC session will deliberate on a draft bill to “establish and improve the legal framework and enforcement mechanism in order to safeguard national security in Hong Kong”.

The European Union has a strong stake in the continued stability and prosperity of Hong Kong under the ‘One Country Two Systems’ principle. It attaches great importance to the preservation of Hong Kong’s high degree of autonomy, in line with the Basic Law and with international commitments, as well as to the respect for this principle.

The EU considers that democratic debate, consultation of key stakeholders, and respect for protected rights and freedoms in Hong Kong would represent the best way of proceeding with the adoption of national security legislation, as foreseen in Article 23 of the Basic Law, while also upholding Hong Kong’s autonomy and the ‘One Country Two Systems’ principle. 

The EU will continue to follow developments closely.

The Candidate Countries Republic of North Macedonia, Montenegro and Albania^[1], the country of the Stabilisation and Association Process and potential candidate Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the EFTA countries Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway, members of the European Economic Area align themselves with this declaration. 

^[1]The Republic of North Macedonia, Montenegro and Albania continue to be part of the Stabilisation and Association Process.