HONG KONG鈥揢S President Donald Trump said he would be taking a hands-off approach towards unrest in Hong Kong as China flexed its military muscle in a sign of growing frustration over weeks of pro-democracy rallies in the former British colony.
The semi-autonomous southern Chinese city has endured two months of protests that began with a government bid to introduce a law that would have allowed extraditions to mainland China.
The demonstrations evolved into a movement for deeper democratic reforms and an end to eroding freedoms, in the most significant challenge to Beijing鈥檚 rule since the city鈥檚 handover from Britain in 1997.
Authorities have shown no sign of backing down, and China鈥檚 military on Wednesday released a propaganda video showing a drill in which armed troops quell a protest in Hong Kong.
The commander of the army鈥檚 city garrison said he was determined to maintain law and order.
It was the strongest public intervention yet from China鈥檚 armed forces but, questioned Thursday about the crisis, US President Donald Trump passed up opportunity to support the pro-democracy movement.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 between Hong Kong and鈥� China,鈥� Trump told reporters at the White House. 鈥淭hey don鈥檛 need advice.鈥�
Military warning
The Chinese military video, posted online by the People鈥檚 Liberation Army鈥檚 (PLA鈥檚) garrison in Hong Kong, shows tanks, helicopters, rocket launchers and heavily armed troops in action across the city.
The three-minute clip also features an 鈥渁nti-riot鈥� drill in which soldiers with assault rifles, armored personnel carriers and water cannons disperse protesters.
鈥淎ll consequences are at your own risk,鈥� a soldier yells into a loudspeaker at the start of the drill in Cantonese, the language spoken in Hong Kong rather than the Mandarin of mainland China.
The video was released on the same day dozens of demonstrators appeared in court to face charges of 鈥渞ioting鈥� over their alleged involvement in a weekend protest.
Chen Daoxiang, the commander of PLA鈥檚 Hong Kong garrison, spoke of the need to maintain order in rare public comments at a late Wednesday reception.
鈥淲e firmly support the action to maintain Hong Kong鈥檚 rule of law by the people who love the nation and the city, and we are determined to protect the national sovereignty, security, stability and the prosperity of Hong Kong,鈥� he said.
Thousands of PLA troops have been based at the Hong Kong garrison since the handover from Britain in 1997, but they generally keep a low profile.
Under the terms of the handover deal, Hong Kong residents enjoy rights and liberties unseen on the mainland, including an independent judiciary and freedom of speech.
But many say those rights are being curtailed.
Flash demo聽
Meanwhile, Hong Kong is braced for a civil servants鈥� rally planned for Friday night, pro-democracy demos during the weekend and a city-wide strike on Monday.
Braving heavy rain on Thursday, workers from around 80 banks gathered in the financial district and more than 700 workers posted photos of their staff cards to declare they would also join Monday鈥檚 action, organizers on the messaging app Telegram said.
Demonstrators said they were angered by alleged cooperation between police and gangsters last month, when a gang of suspected triad members armed with clubs attacked anti-government protesters and bystanders in Yuen Long, a border town near the mainland.
Demonstrators said police reacted too slowly to the incident, and were too lenient with the thugs.
鈥淭here is too much evidence that leads to police-triad collusion,鈥� KS Wong, who works at HSBC retail banking, told AFP.