HONG KONG, June 28 (Xinhua) — Chinese President Xi Jinping will attend a meeting on Friday to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the return to the motherland of Hong Kong, whose development Xi says has always been in his heart.
“Hong Kong’s development has always pulled at my heartstrings,” said Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, upon his arrival in Hong Kong five years ago for the special administrative region’s 20th anniversary.
Over the years, Xi has repeatedly demonstrated his concern for the development of Hong Kong, as well as the well-being of the over 7 million Hong Kong residents. He has initiated projects integrating Hong Kong into the national development, interacted with the youth of Hong Kong and encouraged entrepreneurs to pursue their dreams on the mainland.
Under Xi’s leadership, the central authorities have rolled out a series of major policies and measures to help Hong Kong maintain stability and prosperity under the framework of “one country, two systems.”
On Friday, the president will also attend the inaugural ceremony of the sixth-term government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), which Xi expects to bring refreshing changes to the governance of Hong Kong.
Xi has said that Hong Kong is at a crucial stage on its path to further prosperity.
Hong Kong has witnessed rapid development since the Chinese government resumed the exercise of sovereignty over it on July 1, 1997.
From 1997 to 2021, Hong Kong’s GDP grew from 1.37 trillion Hong Kong dollars (174.59 billion U.S. dollars) to 2.86 trillion Hong Kong dollars. It has weathered challenges including the Asian financial crisis, the SARS epidemic and the international financial crisis, and consolidated its status as an international financial, shipping and trade center.
Under Xi’s leadership, the central authorities have promoted infrastructure connectivity and rolled out policies and measures to further expand the space for Hong Kong’s development.
A fine example of infrastructure connectivity is the mega-bridge at the Pearl River estuary connecting Hong Kong, Macao and the Chinese mainland.