"Keir Starmer will meet the Chinese president Xi Jinping on Thursday for historic talks he hopes will deepen economic ties at a time when some inside government fear the US is no longer a reliable partner. The prime minister the first UK leader to visit China in eight years will hold a 40-minute meeting with Xi at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing before a number of cultural and business receptions."
"As the world's second biggest economy, and the UK's third largest trading partner to which it exports 45bn of goods and services a year, it is no surprise the UK has turned to China in its search for economic reliability. Although the UK does not rank among the top 10 of China's trading partners, the Beijing leadership has spied a political opportunity to improve links with one of the US's closest allies at a time of deep uncertainty in the transatlantic alliance."
Keir Starmer will meet Xi Jinping in Beijing for a 40-minute session at the Great Hall of the People and attend cultural and business receptions. The visit, the first by a UK leader in eight years, aims to deepen economic ties as the UK seeks reliability amid concerns about US dependability. China is the world's second biggest economy and a major market for UK exports. Starmer will also meet premier Li Qiang, maintain guardrails against espionage, and press for the release of Jimmy Lai. The trip has drawn criticism over alleged Chinese recruitment, harassment of activists and cyber-attacks, while Downing Street insists the UK will not be forced to choose between China and the US.
Read at www.theguardian.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]