Why China trip by Keir Starmer may test Labour’s push for ‘reset’ in UK ties
Trade and the economy to top British prime minister’s agenda as London navigates ‘re-engagement’ with Beijing, analysts say
The Chinese foreign ministry announced on Tuesday that Starmer would visit Beijing and Shanghai between January 28 and 31.
Starmer’s government had expressed its desire for a stable and strategic relationship with China, ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun noted, adding that Beijing viewed the visit as “an opportunity to enhance political mutual trust, deepen practical cooperation, and jointly open a new chapter of healthy and stable development [in bilateral ties].”
The visit will serve as a critical test of Starmer’s push for a pragmatic “reset”. His Labour Party must navigate the predicament facing Britain: how to hedge between an increasingly coercive Washington under US President Donald Trump and a Beijing long labelled a “national security threat”.
Boosting economic and trade ties with China – the world’s second-largest economy and London’s third-biggest trading partner – is expected to top Starmer’s agenda when he travels to Beijing and Shanghai.
Yet it remains to be seen how Starmer will handle contentious issues, including human rights in Hong Kong and the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, as well as the Ukraine war and the role of Chinese firms, such as Huawei Technologies, in Britain’s critical infrastructure.