Hong Kong leader John Lee says he 'laughs off' U.S. sanctions

He defended his government's decision not to act against a superyacht reportedly owned by a Kremlin ally

Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee. File | Photo Credit: AP

“It is a very barbaric act and I am not going to comment on the effect of such barbaric act. We will just laugh off the so-called sanctions,” Hong Kong leader John Lee said.

Hong Kong's leader laughed off U.S. sanctions against him on October 11 as he defended his government's decision not to act against a superyacht reportedly owned by a Kremlin ally.

The Nord — a $500 million luxury vessel linked to Russian billionaire Alexei Mordashov — arrived in the Chinese territory's waters last week.

Mr. Mordashov is among the oligarchs close to Russian President Vladimir Putin who have been targeted by Western sanctions following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.

On Saturday, the United States warned Hong Kong could damage its business hub reputation after the city said it would not enforce sanctions on the superyacht.

Hong Kong chief executive John Lee himself is one of multiple Chinese officials sanctioned by the United States in 2020 for their roles in cracking down on political freedoms in the city.

Banks and other companies risk losing access to the U.S.-dominated global markets if they do business with sanctioned officials, with Mr. Lee's predecessor revealing she had to take most of her salary in cash as a result.

When asked about the impact of U.S. sanctions against him on Tuesday, Mr. Lee told reporters: "It is a very barbaric act and I am not going to comment on the effect of such barbaric act. We will just laugh off the so-called sanctions."

Some sanctioned oligarchs have had their luxury yachts seized in places such as Spain and Fiji, but Hong Kong said on Friday that while it implements United Nations sanctions, it cannot enforce those imposed "unilaterally" by countries or blocs.

Mr. Lee repeated that argument on Tuesday, describing U.S. and European sanctions as having "no legal basis".

"We will comply with any UN resolution on sanctions because Hong Kong has the legal basis to enforce it," he said. But he added: "We cannot and will not do anything that has no legal basis".