Hong Kong leader John Lee will miss an APEC meeting in San Francisco due to 'scheduling issues'

Hong Kong leader John Lee will not attend an upcoming economic conference in the U.S. due to “scheduling issues” despite earlier requests to be invited following reports that he would be barred from the conference due to U.S. sanctions. In a statement Tuesday, the Hong Kong government said that it had received an invitation to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation Economic Leaders’ Meeting taking place Nov. 15 to 17 in San Francisco this month, but that Lee would not be able to attend in person due to issues with scheduling. Instead, Hong Kong’s financial minister Paul Chan will attend the meeting as a representative of Hong Kong on behalf of Lee.