Overview
- Trump said in a May 4 interview that he will bring up Jimmy Lai’s imprisonment when he meets Xi Jinping in Beijing on May 14–15.
- The long-delayed summit follows tensions tied to the Israel–Iran war, with fresh friction over US sanctions on Chinese refiners that process Iranian oil.
- Jimmy Lai, the 78-year-old founder of the pro-democracy paper Apple Daily, received a 20-year sentence in February under Hong Kong’s national security law.
- Officials in Beijing and Hong Kong say Lai received a fair trial and they reject outside efforts to press for his release.
- Lai’s family and supporters see the trip as a chance to seek relief for the jailed publisher, citing his age and health concerns.