BEIJING, Sept. 24 -- The Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council said Monday it resolutely supports the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government's ban on the so-called "Hong Kong National Party."

The HKSAR government has announced an order in its Gazette to prohibit the operation of the "Hong Kong National Party." A spokesperson of the office said it is an unregistered and illegal group as well as a "Hong Kong independence" organization.

The HKSAR government's decision to bar the group from operating according to relevant laws and legal procedures is an action that should be taken to maintain national security and the rule of law in Hong Kong, and is absolutely necessary, the spokesperson said. "We resolutely support the decision."

The central government firmly supports the HKSAR in punishing any acts that jeopardize national security in accordance with the law and has zero tolerance for any organizations preaching "Hong Kong independence" or engaging in activities of splitting the country, said the spokesperson.

"We firmly support the HKSAR in maintaining the rule of law, banning the operation of the 'Hong Kong National Party' according to the law and performing the constitutional duty to safeguard the national sovereignty, security and development interests," an official with the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the HKSAR said in an interview with Xinhua Monday.

No activities should be allowed to split the country on Chinese territory of over 9.6 million square kilometers, the official stressed.