Chief Secretary Chan Kwok-ki continued his visit to Beijing today by calling on several central ministries and the Beijing Municipal Government.

At a meeting with Culture & Tourism Vice Minister Li Qun this morning, policy initiatives to enhance Hong Kong's positioning as an international centre for cultural exchange under the National 14th Five-Year Plan were discussed. Mr Chan thanked the ministry for its strong support to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government, stating that it will steadfastly develop the city into an international tourism hub and a core demonstration zone for multi-destination tourism.

The Chief Secretary then visited the People's Government of Beijing Municipality where he met Vice Mayor Liu Yuhui. They exchanged views on deepening co-operation between Hong Kong and Beijing, while Mr Chan expressed hope that the two sides would deepen their exchanges and co-operation in various aspects so as to make greater contributions to the high-quality development of the country.

In the afternoon, Mr Chan held talks at the Ministry of Human Resources & Social Security with Minister Wang Xiaoping on areas such as attracting talent and strengthening human resources development.

This was followed by a meeting with Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs Nong Rong during which Mr Chan expressed gratitude to the ministry for its long-standing support, adding that the Hong Kong SAR Government will continue to safeguard national sovereignty and firmly oppose any interference by external forces in Hong Kong's affairs.

The Chief Secretary also called on the All-China Youth Federation and met its Vice President Fu Zhenbang to discuss holistic youth development. Mr Chan noted that the Hong Kong SAR Government was steadfastly implementing the Youth Development Blueprint released last year and that he looked forward to the relevant work being stepped up continuously.