HONG KONG. Oil 9: British Prime Minister Tony Blair arrived in Hong Kong today after visiting Beijing and Shanghai, reports Reuters,

Blair was scheduled to meet Hong Kong leader Tung Chee-Hwa and pro-democracy campaigner Martin Lee later in the day. It is his second visit to Hong Kong since he became prime minister. He was in Hong Kong last July when Britain handed the territory back to ( liina after 156 years of colonial rule.

He will fly out of Hong Kong on Saturday night.

An earlier AFP reports adds: A genuine warmth has replaced the chill of the period before the handover." Blair said following summit talks in Beijing this week with Chinese President Jiang Zemin and Premier Zhu Rongji.