Attendees at a Hong Kong protest. Reuters

Nike is said to have axed a new line of China-only sneakers earlier this month after the designer promoted a photo in support of the Hong Kong protests.

Nike and the Japanese streetwear brand Undercover, headed by Jun Takahashi, were to release a new collaboration on June 14.

But the release was canceled, according to the Financial Times, after a photo of protesters titled "no extradition to China" was posted on Undercover's Instagram page.

Throughout June, millions of Hong Kongers have protested an extradition bill that, if passed, would see China extend its reach into the semiautonomous territory.

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Nike is said to have scrapped a new line of shoes due for release in China earlier this month because the designer posted a photo on Instagram supporting mass protests against Chinese legal encroachment into Hong Kong.

Nike and the Japanese streetwear brand Undercover, headed by the designer Jun Takahashi, had teamed up to release a new sneaker, scheduled to drop exclusively in mainland China on June 14.

But the launch was axed, according to the Financial Times, after Undercover posted a photo of the Hong Kong protests with the caption "no extradition to China."

The post has since been deleted, with Undercover calling it an "individual opinion."

A previous collaboration between Nike and Undercover. The two brands often collaborate on footwear and clothing. YouTube/AnthonyLevine

YYSports, one of China's largest clothing retailers, said Nike sent it an "urgent notice" saying the June 14 launch was not to go ahead, according to the Financial Times.

Douniu, another vendor due to stock the Nike and Undercover collaboration, said it was delisting all Undercover stock for "special reasons," the Financial Times wrote.

Nike did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

Nearly 2 million people took to the streets of Hong Kong on June 16 to protest a bill that if passed would see China given the power to extradite Hong Kong residents so they can be put on trial in China.

Read more: The US just quietly challenged China on something Beijing promised to go to war over

It came about after a 19-year-old Hong Kong resident was accused of killing his pregnant girlfriend while on holiday in Taiwan last year. China claims Taiwan, which is self-governed, as its territory.

Protesters with placards bearing the face of Hong Kong's chief executive, Carrie Lam, emblazoned with the word "liar." Associated Press

The man fled back to Hong Kong but cannot be tried in Taiwan because an extradition treaty between the territories does not exist.

So far the protests have stalled the bill's passage, but it has not been fully removed from the legislative agenda.

Hong Kong's under-pressure chief executive, Carrie Lam, apologized to protesters on June 15, though she refused to step down or scrap the bill.

Read more: Hong Kong uses low-tech street smarts to smash China's techno-authoritarianism

Critics of the extradition bill say it would expose residents to China's less transparent legal system. Beijing allowed Hong Kong to keep its own legal system after the British left the colonized region in 1997.

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