Keir Starmer has become the first British prime minister to visit China since Theresa May in 2018, vowing to bring “stability and clarity” to the UK’s approach to Beijing. The trip comes as China is now central to the world’s green technology and economic future, and Downing Street acknowledges the country cannot be ignored.
Ahead of the talks, Chinese leader Xi Jinping said the bilateral relationship had gone through “twists and turns” over the years but that a more “consistent” approach was in both interests. Starmer responded by telling Xi he wanted a “more sophisticated” relationship between the two nations.
The prime minister joins a list of Western leaders who have recently visited Beijing, including Emmanuel Macron in December and Mark Carney earlier this month, with Germany’s Friedrich Merz due next. Starmer has warned the world is entering its most unstable period in a generation, but he is keen to avoid framing the trip as a rupture with Washington and is attempting a careful balancing act between Beijing, Brussels and the United States.
Laura Chappell, associate director for international policy at the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR), described the UK’s China policy as “confused”. She said the visit is “a more careful trip” and that expectations should be modest, with no transformational change likely in how the relationship is conducted or in major announcements affecting Britain’s growth trajectory.
China is Britain’s third largest trading partner, with total trade in goods and services worth £98.4bn in 2024. Chappell said China is essential to the UK both geopolitically and economically, though the relationship also carries notable security risks.
