UK Prime Minister Starmer to Visit China, Seeking to Improve Sino-UK Relations Amid Disagreements
UK Prime Minister Starmer will visit China this week. This will be the first official visit by a UK prime minister to China since 2018. The move is widely seen as marking a thaw in Sino-UK bilateral relations, especially in trade and economic cooperation, but there are still significant differences between the two sides on multiple issues.
According to AFP, the UK's Downing Street announced on Monday that Starmer will depart on the evening of January 27th to embark on an official visit to China and Japan, but details were not disclosed.
Before Starmer's visit, French President Macron and Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau had already visited China successively.
Since taking office in July 2024, Starmer has been committed to restarting and improving relations with China, especially hoping that the Asian economic giant can bring new opportunities for the sluggish British economy. The UK Chancellor of the Exchequer, Reeves, had visited China a year ago, sending a signal to strengthen bilateral trade and economic relations.
However, Reuters analysis points out that Starmer needs to balance cooperation and security in his China policy.
Former UK Prime Minister Cameron proposed the "Golden Era" concept of Sino-UK relations centered on economic and trade cooperation in the early 2010s, but this period eventually ended, and Sino-UK relations gradually cooled down.
After completing his China trip, Starmer will visit Japan on Saturday, January 31st, and hold talks with Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio.
Source: rfi
Original: toutiao.com/article/1855433256118276/
Disclaimer: This article represents the views of the author himself.