LONDON: China is no longer compliant with Hong Kong's joint declaration after Beijing announced sweeping changes to the region's electoral system, Britain said Saturday. "The UK now considers Beijing to be in a state of ongoing non-compliance with the Sino-British Joint Declaration," the foreign ministry said in a statement.

The treaty was signed before Britain handed Hong Kong back to China in 1997 and was designed to allay fears about its future under Beijing's rule.

It guarantees the financial hub special status including a high degree of autonomy to manage its own affairs and the right to freedom of speech.

But British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said that Beijing's decision "to impose radical changes to restrict participation in Hong Kong's electoral system" was a "further clear breach" of the agreement.