British Foreign Minister meets Ding Xuexiang and Wang Yi hope to have constructive dialogue | Lianhe Zaobao

British Foreign Minister Lamy met with Chinese Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang and Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Friday and expressed the hope to have a constructive dialogue with China. According to the analysis of the interviewed scholars, this means that the Labor government intends to improve relations with China, but it does not represent a fundamental change in Britain’s China policy.

Lamy’s two-day visit to China will begin on Friday (October 18). It is the first visit to China by a senior British official since Starmer was elected as British Prime Minister in July this year. It is also the second time in six years that a British foreign secretary has visited China.

Lamy first met with Ding Xuexiang at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing in the morning, and held talks with Wang Yi at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in the afternoon.

According to a statement on the website of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ding Xuexiang told Lamy that China and the UK are both permanent members of the United Nations Security Council and major economies in the world, and the interests of both sides are deeply intertwined.

Ding Xuexiang went on to mention that Chinese President Xi Jinping had a phone call with Starmer not long ago and reached an important consensus on enhancing exchanges and cooperation between China and the UK in various fields, pointing out the direction for promoting the development of bilateral relations.

Ding Xuexiang said that China is willing to work with the UK to focus on the strategy and long-term, develop stable and mutually beneficial Sino-UK relations, promote the upgrading of practical cooperation in various fields, better benefit the two countries and the two peoples, and inject world peace and prosperity. Greater kinetic energy.

According to reports from Reuters and Agence France-Presse, Lamy emphasized in subsequent talks with Wang Yi that the UK will always put national security and national interests first. And Beijing and London should show that “countries like ours, with different histories and perspectives, can still find pragmatic solutions to complex challenges.”

In addition, Lamy also mentioned the scope of “mutually beneficial cooperation” between the two countries in the fields of climate, energy, science, trade and technology.

Wang Yi said that China-UK relations now stand at a new starting point, and the Labor Party’s new model for developing relations between the two countries is “positive” and meets the needs of the current bilateral relations.

Lamy (left) and Wang Yi (right) held talks at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing on October 18. (Reuters)

Sino-British relations have deteriorated in recent years due to Hong Kong protests, human rights issues and accusations of Chinese espionage; but the new Labor government is seeking to reduce confrontation with China and resume trade and investment negotiations.

A press release issued by the British Foreign Office on its official website on Friday described, “Engagement with China is pragmatic and necessary to support British and global interests.” The two countries must have frequent candid conversations.

The press release also mentioned that Britain and China “share common interests, including the global green energy transformation and deep economic ties”, and emphasized that China, including Hong Kong, is the UK’s fourth largest trading partner.

However, The Guardian reported on Wednesday that a number of British MPs wrote to Lamy this week, asking him to pay attention to human rights issues during his visit to China, including Hong Kong Next Media founder Jimmy Lai, who was accused of violating the national security law, The current situation of the Uyghurs in Xinjiang, etc., and expressed deep concern about China’s unilateral changes in the status quo across the Taiwan Strait.

Starmer also promised in the House of Commons that day that he would raise Taiwan and other security issues with Beijing. A press release from the British Foreign Office also mentioned that Lamy will urge China to stop its political and economic support for Russia in the Russo-Ukrainian war.

Li Dazhong, a professor at the Institute of International Affairs and Strategy at Tamkang University in Taiwan, pointed out in an interview with Lianhe Zaobao that Lamy’s trip can be seen as the Labor government’s recalibration of relations with China, with a special emphasis on economic and trade cooperation.

However, Li Dazhong believes that this does not mean that the UK is relaxing its vigilance against China, or that it is completely decoupled from Western countries led by the United States.

Li Guanjie, a think tank researcher at the British Research Center of the Shanghai Institute of Global Governance and Regional Countries at Shanghai International Studies University, also pointed out in an interview with The Paper that Lamy’s choice to visit China before the US election is a diplomatic strategy of the Labor Party.

He concluded that the UK hopes to establish communication channels between China and the UK before the US election, so that after the results of the November election, it can adjust its China policy more in line with the UK’s interests at any time and be more subjective.

Lamy is expected to transfer to Shanghai on Saturday (19th) to meet with representatives of British companies before concluding his visit to China.