China UK Photo: VCG

At the invitation of Member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi, David Lammy, Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs of the UK, is paying an official visit to China from October 18 to 19. Lammy is the first cabinet minister of the new British government to visit China, and he will have in-depth communication with the Chinese side on enhancing strategic mutual trust and strengthening dialogue and cooperation in various fields based on the implementation of the consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries in their August call. This is also the latest act by the Keir Starmer administration to adjust the UK's relations with China and is expected to improve and create positive conditions for China-UK relations to get back on track.

It is reported that since coming to power, Starmer has had many diplomatic problems to deal with. One of them is to correct the chaos in London's China policy in recent years, which has also become an important direction of change for the current British government. Britain has realized that its engagements with China in recent years have lagged far behind compared to other major countries. In particular, the UK has developed a sense of crisis after becoming an "absolute outlier" in the G7. Domestically, after the twists and turns of recent years, the UK has realized that China and the UK should not be and cannot move toward mutual isolation, and the voices of reflection and even calls for cooperation with China are on the rise. All these constitute the background for the British side to adjust its policy toward China. After Lammy, it is reported that Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves is also considering a visit to China.

From then British prime minister Rishi Sunak's shocking statement in April that China is the "greatest state-based threat" to the UK's economic security, to the new administration's move to actively improve relations with China, the underlying factor behind London's shift in tone is the intrinsic need for the development of mutual relations between China and the UK. For some time now, on the basis of mutual respect, the two countries have launched high-level interactions and dialogues in a number of fields, including foreign affairs, economy, finance, energy and defense, releasing a stabilizing signal in bilateral ties.

The two countries' choice of starting by strengthening economic ties is a pragmatic decision based on the current realities of their relationship. In recent years, despite the political chill between the two countries, economic relations have remained warm. Currently, China is the UK's largest trading partner in Asia, and the UK is China's third-largest trading partner in Europe, its second-largest investment destination, and its third-largest source of foreign investment. The UK has long been one of the top destinations for Chinese companies entering the European market, and the two countries have broad prospects for cooperation in energy transition, an area the UK government places great value on. Moreover, the UK business community widely hopes to improve trade and economic relations with China, especially in the post-Brexit era, as the UK needs to explore new markets.

However, whether Lammy's visit can end the UK's diplomatic and policy confusion toward China and lead to a comprehensive improvement in bilateral relations remains to be seen. The challenge lies in whether the new UK government can break away from a US-style strategic competition mind-set and the rebranded "competitive-collaborative-adversarial" trichotomy, which is essentially old thinking in new packaging, and instead pursue a new path of stable and mutually beneficial China-UK relations with a pragmatic and rational attitude, while maintaining strategic autonomy. If the UK remains limited to its current actions and fails to fundamentally break away from the political framework that led to the downturn in China-UK relations in recent years, significant improvement will be difficult. Some voices in British public opinion are also questioning how the government will balance cooperation, competition, and challenges in its China policy with its stance toward US policies on China.

Additionally, the UK's domestic attitude toward China remains diverse and even contradictory, meaning the foundation for stabilizing bilateral relations is not very solid. Judging from the various pressures exerted by British public opinion on London before Lammy's visit, there remain ideological prejudices against China, the "China threat" narrative and its variants in British society, and even some voices that simply do not wish to see improved China-UK relations. How to withstand these pressures, accurately assess China-UK relations, break free from the severe negative impacts of recent years' pan-politicization and pan-securitization, and truly recognize the shared interests and cooperative needs between China and the UK should be a key goal in adjusting UK policy toward China.

The UK's new government previously stated that it would manage China-UK relations with a "long-term and strategic" approach, and we hope this can become a new starting point for mutual understanding. While there are differences in systems and cultural and social aspects between China and the UK, as long as mutual respect and win-win cooperation are achieved, the two countries can indeed embark on a new phase of stable and reciprocal relations. Previously, in response to the UK's proposed "three Cs" of its China policy, namely "compete, challenge, and cooperate," the Global Times editorial suggested a better "new three Cs" - Communication, Consensus, and Cooperation. In the context of Lammy's visit, we would like to reiterate this suggestion and hope that on the basis of pragmatic and rational principles, the two sides can achieve results that benefit both nations and jointly address global challenges.