Macau: China president hails chief exective’s work ‘defending national security’

China’s president, Xi Jinping, on Monday praised the government of Macau for its work defending national security and diversifying the economy of the special administrative region (SAR), during a meeting with its chief executive, Chui Sai On.

“The central government fully endorses the work by Chui and the Macao SAR government,” said Xi, as quoted by China’s state news agency, Xinhua.

Chui Sai On was in Beijing for meetings with Xi and China’s prime minister, Li Keqiang, to take stock of the regional government’s work in 2018.

“The Macau government has perfected the institutions and mechanisms to safeguard national security,” Xi was quoted as saying, highlighting its “proactive participation” in the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area project to integrate the wider region’s economy and in China’s strategic One Belt, One Road initiative.

The Greater Bay Area project aims to create a world metropolis from the territories of Hong Kong, Macau and nine localities in Guangdong, on the mainland – Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Zhuhai, Foshan, Huizhou, Dongguan, Zhongshan, Jiangmen and Zhaoqing.

The One Belt One Road plan is China’s bid to connect south-east Asia, central Asia, Africa and Europe with the construction of new ports, airports and an intercontinental rail network, in order to boost its global trade. During a visit by Xi to Portugal earlier this month, his hosts signed agreements supporting the initiative.

Xi told Chui that the Macau government had, under leadership, “faithfully fulfilled its duties” and was “prudent” and “stable” in its work.

“In the process of reform and openness in the new era, Hong Kong and Macau continue to have a special status and unique advantages, and can play an irreplaceable role,” he said.

According to the ‘one country, two systems’ formula agreed when Portugal and the UK handed back control of Macau and Hong Kong respeCtively, China’s national policies of central control from Beijing of the state and economy do not apply in the two territories, except in the areas of defence and external relations, and the two territories enjoy “a degree of autonomy”.