Golden era of UK-China relations is over – PM Rishi Sunak
Rishi Sunak has pledged to “evolve” the UK’s stance toward China, stating that the so-called “golden era” of relations is over.
The PM said in his first foreign policy speech that the previous decade’s closer economic ties were “naive.”
He stated that the UK needed to move away from wishful thinking and move toward competitors with “robust pragmatism.”
However, he cautioned against “Cold War rhetoric” and emphasised China’s global significance.
Since becoming PM, Rishi Sunak has faced pressure from Tory backbenchers to toughen the UK’s stance on China.
China protests over Covid lockdown
The PM’s comments come following a weekend of demonstrations in China against the country’s stringent Covid lockdown laws.
A BBC journalist was detained on Sunday while covering a protest in Shanghai. Police have made several arrests.
During his arrest, the police beat and kicked him, and he was held for several hours before being released.
The PM told the audience of business leaders and foreign policy experts that in the face of the protests, China had “chosen to crack down further, including by assaulting a BBC journalist”.
“We recognise China poses a systemic challenge to our values and interests, a challenge that grows more acute as it moves towards even greater authoritarianism,” he said.
