HONG KONG: Hong Kong customs confirmed on Tuesday that they will return the nine armoured troop carriers seized two months ago to Singapore. Deng Renguang, director of Hong Kong customs, said that they had detained the armoured vehicles on November 23 because the transit of the vehicles had been suspected of violating Hong Kong law. He said that Hong Kong customs had finished its investigation and may file criminal charges. All the vehicles will be returned to Singapore, Deng added. It is reported that Singapore’s Ministry of Defense has released several statements, asking the local government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) to return the seized vehicles, which were reportedly used in military drills in Taiwan.
During a daily news briefing on November 25 of last year, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang said China has demanded that Singapore abide by the laws of Hong Kong and cooperate with the HKSAR government in handling the matter. The Chinese government strongly opposes any official interactions between the Taiwan region and any country that has established diplomatic relations with China, including military exchanges and cooperation, Geng added.
