HKSAR chief executive will not attend APEC meeting due to scheduling issues: FM

BEIJING, Nov. 1 (Xinhua) -- John Lee, chief executive of China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), has appointed Paul Chan, financial secretary of the HKSAR government, to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders' Meeting on his behalf due to scheduling issues, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said on Wednesday.

According to a statement issued by the HKSAR government, Hong Kong has received the invitation in accordance with customary practice from the host of the APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting, which will be held in San Francisco from Nov. 15 to 17. Lee will not be able to attend in person due to issues with scheduling. Instead, Chan will attend as a representative of Hong Kong on Lee's behalf.

In response to a related query, spokesperson Wang Wenbin told a daily news briefing that this year's APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting will be held in San Francisco in the United States from Nov. 15 to 17. Lee has received an invitation from the U.S. side to attend the meeting.