Beijing's Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the SAR, Cui Jianchun, on Saturday said a country has been causing global chaos by enforcing unilateral sanctions and waging tariff wars.

Without naming the country, Cui said it has gone against the flow of history as it damaged international treaties and left global organisations.

He said China, meanwhile, will insist on treading the path of peaceful development and mutual cooperation.

"China is not afraid of being intimidated by a hegemonic power," Cui said during a speech at the Hong Kong Cup Diplomatic Knowledge Contest hosted by his office.

"There is no way out for protectionism, and there are no winners in rotten tariffs.

"China will continue to actively embrace the world and empower the world with high-quality development and a high-level opening up."

Cui called on young people to learn more about Chinese history, understand more about the nation's foreign affairs as they observe what's going on around the world.

He said people can then remember their Chinese roots while cherishing the opportunities offered by the times.

At the same event, Chief Executive John Lee said he sees young people getting more interested in the country's foreign affairs, expressing the hope that they could learn more about the nation's new developments on the international stage.

He noted that under the "One Country, Two Systems" principle, the SAR can engage with other places in areas such as finance under the name of Hong Kong, China.

Lee said he's glad that the state leaders of Qatar and Kuwait attached great importance to the delegation he led to the Middle East this week.

"We took a step further in our relationships with the governments of the two places," he said.

"We created business opportunities, expanded our areas of cooperation as well as our circle of friends."