BEIJING - Premier Li Keqiang granted the official certificate of appointment to John Lee as the sixth-term chief executive of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) on Monday.

The central government will maintain the firm commitment to fully and faithfully implement the principle of "one country, two systems" under which the people of Hong Kong administer Hong Kong with a high degree of autonomy, Li told Lee.

The premier vowed to ensure that the central government exercises overall jurisdiction over the special administrative region and that Hong Kong is administered by patriots.

The central government will give full support to the chief executive and the SAR government in exercising law-based governance, developing the economy, improving people's wellbeing, as well as in combining the needs of the country and leveraging Hong Kong's strengths so as to promote Hong Kong's better integration into the country's overall development and maintain its long-term prosperity and stability, Li said.

The central government and the mainland always support Hong Kong in overcoming various difficulties, risks and challenges, Li said.

Li expressed his hope that the new HKSAR government will rally people from all walks of life in Hong Kong, actively respond to public concerns, and improve its performance in governance.

Efforts are needed to give full play to Hong Kong's traditional strengths, enhance its overall competitiveness, consolidate and elevate its status as a global financial, shipping and trade center, and accelerate the pace to build the city into an international center for innovation and technology, Li said.

He stressed the importance of containing the COVID-19 virus in Hong Kong, improving people's wellbeing, and solving prominent problems affecting the immediate interests of the public, particularly those troubling their livelihood.

Lee expressed his thanks for the central government's appointment, saying he will live up to the trust of the central government and the expectations of Hong Kong residents, fully and faithfully implement the principle of "one country, two systems" in accordance with the HKSAR Basic Law, spare no effort to strive for the development of Hong Kong, the wellbeing of its residents, and its long-term prosperity and stability.

Vice Premier Han Zheng attended the meeting.

Lee, who won the chief executive election on May 8, will assume office on July 1, 2022.