The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR, or Hong Kong hereinafter) is a free port. It is the Government's policy to encourage free flow of imports and exports. Where controls are required, they are imposed on health, safety, environmental protection, anti-smuggling reasons or to secure unrestricted access to high technology products. Among the controlled items are strategic commodities.

Trade and Industry Department maintains control on import and export of strategic commodities including munitions items, chemical and biological weapons and their precursors, nuclear materials and equipment, and dual-use goods that are capable to be developed into weapons of mass destruction. In addition, the Department imposes end-use control on products that are used in connection with the development of weapons of mass destruction. These controls are to prevent Hong Kong from being used as a conduit for the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and to guarantee its access to high technology products.

In view of Hong Kong's status as a regional trading and distribution centre, the Government is committed to maintaining an effective and efficient import and export control system which could guard against illegal flow of strategic commodities and at the same time facilitate legitimate business.

Hong Kong is fully committed to upholding an effective system of control on strategic commodities. We will continue to update the controls to reflect changes agreed by the international control regimes.