The son of prominent Hong Kong former publisher Jimmy Lai, who is facing possible life imprisonment in the Chinese city, has called for his father’s release in a high-profile national security case.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Hopes for the release of detained Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai are higher following U.S. President Donald Trump's return to office, Lai's son said on Tuesday in Washington, where he and advocates plan to meet Trump administration officials.

Hong Kong media tycoon and pro-democracy advocate Jimmy Lai finished testifying in court on Thursday in a landmark national security trial where he stands accused of colluding with foreign forces and sedition.

The son of jailed Hong Kong media mogul Jimmy Lai has called for an urgent meeting with Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer, saying he was "desperate" as his father's defence drew to a close in a high-profile trial.

Jailed Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai has denied at his national security trial that he requested Washington, via a senior US adviser, to sanction China after the Beijing-imposed security law came into effect five years ago.

Admission contradicts previous denial that he had deliberately concealed his intended meeting with then US No 2 official Mike Pence.