Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper has confirmed that she raised the case of imprisoned British tycoon Jimmy Lai during her two-day visit to China, amid opposition calls for her to secure his release. She stated that a 'really important' working relationship had been established between the UK and China after years of frosty relations.
Pressure on Human Rights Issues
Ms Cooper faced pressure to take a harder line with Beijing over national security and human rights concerns, including the detention of media tycoon Mr Lai. When asked whether she had insisted on Mr Lai's release and how firmly she pressed his case with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, she said: 'I've raised this and will continue to raise Jimmy Lai because this is a very important case to us. Our case remains we want to see his release as soon as possible, he's a very elderly man. And I will be talking to his family and will continue to talk to his family.'
Before the visit, Prime Minister Keir Starmer's government faced calls to challenge Beijing more forcefully on reported human rights abuses against the Uighur Muslim minority in Xinjiang. Ms Cooper confirmed she had raised freedom of religion as well.
Engagement with China
The UK government views engagement with China as key to protecting Britain's security amid global volatility but insists it will challenge Beijing where necessary. Meeting Chinese Vice President Han Zheng, Ms Cooper emphasised that the 'international rules-based order' was in both countries' shared interest. She noted that China, as a permanent member of the UN Security Council, must be engaged on global security issues.
She highlighted shared interests such as freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, a critical maritime trade route closed by Iran after an attack by the US and Israel in February.
Visit to Shenzhen
Following bilateral talks in Beijing, Ms Cooper flew to Shenzhen, a major technology hub. There, she met city party secretary Jin Lei and toured a laboratory of the Institute of Artificial Intelligence and Robotics for Society, where she saw AI applications in healthcare and power grids.
She raised safety issues surrounding AI with both Mr Wang and Mr Han, advocating for global standards to safeguard AI development. 'What I want to see is global standards on AI security and safety involving the UN,' she said, drawing parallels to international nuclear standards where cooperation with China has occurred despite differences.
Ms Cooper then travelled to Delhi, India, for talks on global security, including the situation around Hormuz, with her counterpart S Jaishankar and other leaders.
