Trump asks Xi Jinping to release Jimmy Lai and says he ‘feels so badly’ about media tycoon’s jailing

American president has offered more muted support for Lai’s cause since promising to ‘100 per cent get him out’

US president Donald Trump says he has asked Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping to consider releasing Jimmy Lai, after the British media mogul was convicted of sedition in Hong Kong.

Mr Trump, who previously promised to “100 per cent get him out” of jail, expressed sadness over Mr Lai’s plight but stopped short of making a pledge to secure his release.

Mr Lai, 78, was convicted on Monday of colluding with foreign forces to endanger national security, conspiring to publish seditious articles in his newspaper, and fraudulently breaching the lease conditions for his company’s office premises. He has denied all charges.

His national security trial was closely watched in the West as a barometer of press freedom and judicial independence in the former British colony, which returned to Chinese rule in 1997.

File. Jimmy Lai was convicted of colluding with foreign forces to endanger national security in Hong Kong (AFP via Getty)

“I feel so badly. I spoke to President Xi about it and I asked to consider his release,” Mr Trump told reporters on Monday, without specifying when he had spoken with Mr Xi.

“He’s an older man and he’s not well. So I did put that request out. We’ll see what happens.”

The US president said in August he had raised Mr Lai’s case with Beijing and, according to Reuters, he urged Mr Xi to release the British businessman during their meeting in South Korea in October. The two leaders held a call in November focusing on trade issues and Taiwan.

US secretary of state Marco Rubio argued that Mr Lai’s guilty verdict showed China’s determination to “silence those who seek to protect freedom of speech and other fundamental rights”. “We urge the authorities to bring this ordeal to an end as soon as possible and to release Mr Lai on humanitarian grounds,” he said, citing reports of the Briton’s poor health.

Lai is led into a police van as he leaves for court in Hong Kong in 2020 (AFP via Getty)

The British government demanded that Mr Lai be “immediately released” and summoned the Chinese ambassador to protest the conviction.

Foreign secretary Yvette Cooper condemned the judgment as a “politically motivated persecution”.

Shadow foreign secretary Priti Patel called Mr Lai’s case a “political show trial” that was “an outrage to democracy, personal freedom and liberty”.

“His degrading treatment and imprisonment at the hands of the Chinese Communist Party’s authoritarian regime has been appalling.”

She called upon prime minister Sir Keir Starmer to “directly raise Jimmy’s case with President Xi and demand Jimmy’s immediate release from custody so his ordeal can end, he can be returned to Britain and be reunited with his family”.

A statement from the EU said it “deplores the conviction” of Mr Lai which was “emblematic of the erosion of democracy and fundamental freedoms in Hong Kong”.

China, in response, warned foreign powers against “smearing” Hong Kong’s justice system and interference in the country’s internal affairs.

“China strongly deplores and firmly opposes certain countries that blatantly smear and slander Hong Kong’s justice system,” Guo Jiakun, spokesperson for the Chinese foreign ministry said. “We urge relevant countries to respect China’s sovereignty, Hong Kong’s rule of law, to not unleash irresponsible remarks on the proceeding of the case in Hong Kong.”

Claire Lai, daughter of Jimmy, says her father wants to reunite with his family (AP)

Mr Trump had assured during his 2024 presidential campaign that he would secure Mr Lai’s freedom if elected, emphasising he would “100 per cent get him out”. In August this year, the president said he would “do everything I can to save” the British mogul.

Mr Lai was arrested in 2020 shortly after Beijing introduced tough new national security laws as part of a crackdown on the previous year’s anti-government agitation. He was best known as the founder of the now-defunct Apple Daily, a tabloid that was fiercely critical of Beijing.

He fled mainland China as a child and went on to become one of the most outspoken supporters of the democratic movement in Hong Kong, backing protests and holding meetings with foreign dignitaries.

Mr Lai’s conviction came after a marathon trial, keeping him in prison for five years. His family has raised concerns over his deteriorating health over the years, claiming severe weight loss, falling teeth, and hearing and vision loss.

Mr Lai is set to be sentenced early next year after a mitigation hearing in mid-January.