Hong Kong leader John Lee has tested positive for COVID-19 upon returning from an Asia-Pacific summit, the city government announced on Monday, days after meeting Chinese President Xi Jinping and other heads of state.
Last week, Lee travelled to Thailand’s capital Bangkok to attend an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum meeting. His office said he tested negative on rapid antigen tests during the four days there.
“The Chief Executive is in quarantine by guidelines provided by the Center for Health Protection,” a government statement said.
The APEC summit was Lee’s first overseas trip since the pandemic began nearly three years ago, as well as his first since taking over as chief executive of Hong Kong in July.
Lee met with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Indonesian President Joko Widodo, Vietnamese President Nguyen Phuc and several other senior officials at the forum.
At the informal leaders’ summit on Friday, Lee sat between Xi and Widodo, all three unmasked.
The trip was partly aimed at reviving Hong Kong’s status as a regional financial hub after the city was effectively cut off from the rest of the world during the pandemic due to strict quarantine requirements for inbound travellers.
The government has eased restrictions in recent months, scrapping mandatory hotel quarantine and reducing the number of mandatory tests for arrivals.
Masking remains mandatory in public places, requiring residents to check in on a government-run app at restaurants and entertainment venues.
Lee’s office said he would continue working from home during his mandatory isolation period and that his staff members travelling with him had tested negative.