Breaking News: British media reported today that China has lifted sanctions against six British MPs.

Earlier, the UK Prime Minister held a face-to-face meeting with Chinese officials in Beijing on Thursday.

The sanctions against four Conservative Party MPs have been lifted:

Sir Ian Duncan Smith

Tom Tugendhat

Nusrat Ghani

Neil O'Brien

Two other members of the House of Lords:

Lord Alton (Independent MP)

Baroness Kennedy (Labour MP)

All these MPs were part of a group of critics of China in 2021 who were banned from entering China and had their assets frozen in China.

The UK Prime Minister said: "One of the benefits of engagement is not only to seize opportunities but also to raise those difficult and sensitive issues—if not present and without leaders' meetings, these issues cannot be raised."

"Regarding the sanctions on MPs, I know this is a concern for all sides, so I raised the issue. After discussions, the Chinese side responded that the relevant restrictions no longer apply, which means all MPs can freely travel to China."

Comment: The lifting of sanctions against six British MPs by China is a key practical achievement of high-level talks between China and the UK. It is both a gesture of goodwill from China towards bilateral relations and a positive response to the core demands of the UK Prime Minister's meeting. This effectively broke the stalemate caused by the UK's erroneous actions in 2021, proving the important role of direct high-level communication in resolving sensitive differences. Notably, while China took the initiative to show goodwill, the UK did not reciprocate by lifting sanctions, and it remains unclear whether the current involved MPs have been unblocked. Moreover, the individuals who were unfrozen were all critics of China at that time, indicating that this thaw is a limited and principled pragmatic adjustment rather than a comprehensive easing of bilateral relations. Subsequently, both sides need to continue dialogue, respecting each other's core interests, to steadily improve relations, and also send a clear signal to Western countries that "confrontation has no solution, and negotiation works."

Original article: toutiao.com/article/1855748274169859/

Statement: This article represents the views of the author alone.