Opinion | As the new cold war thaws, UK and China look set for warmer ties
A decade ago, Sino-British relations enjoyed a āgolden eraā of cooperation. Eight years and four prime ministers later, relations had deteriorated so rapidly China was labelled a āthreatā to the British way of life. The 2023 UK Defence Review identified Beijingās ācoercive behaviourā and efforts to ārewrite the international orderā as the āepoch-defining global challenge to British interestsā.
In turn, Beijing claimed the British establishment suffered from a ācolonial mindsetā. A China Daily editorial called the attempt to project a āglobal Britainā desperate and urged the UK to stop āfanning the flames of confrontationā.
Since winning last yearās election however, Keir Starmerās Labour government has made reversing this downward trend a central foreign policy objective. Launching a charm offensive, high-ranking British officials and politicians have made their way east.
Last October, Foreign Secretary David Lammy became only the second British foreign minister to visit China in six years. In January, Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves travelled to Beijing and Shanghai to normalise relations and secure economic investment, referring to her trip as a āre-engagementā in a sign of how far Sino-British relations had deteriorated.
This month, Admiral Tony Radakin, the head of Britainās armed forces, also made the trip to China, the first by a chief of defence staff since the UK-China āgolden eraā. Radakin discussed military-to-military communications and joint security concerns with the Chinese military leadership and even gave a speech to students at the Peopleās Liberation Armyās National Defence University.
This is remarkable: Britainās defence chief visiting to discuss security concerns with Beijing when just two years ago China was identified as the epoch-defining security concern. Only last July, Britainās army chief, General Roland Walker, listed China among the key reasons Britain had three years to prepare for war.