The resumption of "contact" is crucial, as the British Foreign Secretary's first visit to China in five years is crucial

Paper reporter Wang Lu

After a five-year hiatus, the highest official in British foreign affairs has resumed his visit to China.

British Foreign Secretary James Cleverley. Data chart

At the invitation of Wang Yi, a member of the Politburo of the Communist Party of China and Minister of Foreign Affairs, British Foreign Secretary Cleverley made an official visit to China on August 30th. This visit is the first time a British Foreign Secretary has visited Beijing since the visit of then Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunter to China in July 2018.

As a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council and a major global economy, China and the UK share the common responsibility of promoting world peace, stability, and development. Maintaining and developing bilateral relations is in the common interests of the two peoples. When asked about their expectations for Cleverley's visit, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin stated on August 29 that during their visit to China, the two sides will have in-depth communication on China UK relations and international and regional issues of common concern. I hope that the British side can work together with the Chinese side to promote the stable development of China UK relations.

Pengpai News learned from relevant sources that Chinese officials such as Wang Yi will hold meetings and talks with Cleverley during this trip. Cleverley will also meet with some business people in China. In addition, British Secretary of State for Commerce and Trade, Dominic Johnson, also plans to visit China in the near future.

Although the visit is only for one day, it is particularly important for the UK to restore sustained contact between senior officials from both countries, and Cleverley's visit also signifies the resumption of offline contact at this level. It should be noted that considering the recent fluctuations in the UK's policy stance towards China, there are still uncertain factors regarding whether the currently turbulent China UK relationship can stabilize.

The British side calls for cooperation with China

Strong and constructive engagement

Over the past five years, due to the impact of the COVID-19 and related domestic and international situations, high-level exchanges between China and the UK have been relatively limited. Given the low performance of bilateral relations, the importance of Cleverley's visit to China in restoring bilateral contacts is self-evident.

It is worth noting that Cleverley also emphasized the importance of engagement with China in a policy speech in April this year. He stated that the British government will engage with China in a "strong and constructive" manner, rather than isolating China in a so-called "new cold war". On the other hand, he also mentioned that the UK will protect its national security interests. And this speech is also considered as the clearest statement of the new British government's policy towards China since the current Prime Minister Sunak took office.

According to sources from the UK, during Cleverley's visit to China, it is expected that both China and the UK will engage in serious, candid, and constructive dialogue on all issues of concern. From the perspective of topic scope, this includes both areas where both sides have common interests and differences between the two countries. The source gave an example that the UK is currently more concerned about the situation in Russia and Ukraine, but at the same time, it will also discuss global issues such as climate change with China.

Just last month, Wang Yi had a brief conversation with Cleverley on July 14th as requested in Jakarta. According to relevant sources, the difference between Cleverley's visit to China this time may lie in the depth and duration of discussions on these issues between the two sides.

Pengpai News reporters have noticed that in the past few years, there has been little interaction or contact between Chinese and British leaders. The last meeting between Chinese and British leaders can be traced back to the reign of Theresa May in February 2018. Afterwards, then British Prime Minister Johnson had a phone conversation with Chinese leaders in March 2021. During the G20 summit in November 2022, the planned meeting between Chinese and British leaders was cancelled due to a temporary schedule.

In fact, prior to Cleverley's visit to China, there were senior British officials who were relatively low-key in their stance. According to the Global Times, citing British media reports, Secretary of State for Commerce and Trade Johnson visited Hong Kong in May this year, which was seen as a "probing move" by the Sunak government in its engagement with China.

A more subtle policy stance towards China

The outside world has noticed that the British government has been fluctuating in its policies and actions towards China for a period of time. Analysts believe that the Sunak government has adopted a more "subtle" strategy than the previous two prime ministers, advocating for "improvement" of Britain's foreign policy, which is also reflected in its stance on China policy.

Shortly after taking office at the end of last year, Sunak firmly stated that the "golden age" of UK China relations had come to an end. In March of this year, an updated version of the Comprehensive Assessment Report on Security, Defense, Development, and Foreign Policy was released in the UK, positioning China as a "groundbreaking challenge". The spokesperson of the Chinese Embassy in the UK responded that China is a groundbreaking opportunity, not a challenge.

The British report portrays the so-called Chinese challenge and attacks and smears China, which China strongly opposes and strongly opposes.

However, soon after, Cleverley seemed to release another message of easing relations in his policy speech towards China. He stated that he will develop a plan for the UK to improve its relationship with China in the next year and called for a more constructive and stable relationship between the UK and China; Believing that launching a "new Cold War" against China and isolating China is not in line with the national interests of the UK. But he also claimed to defend British national security and values, and mentioned issues related to Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Xinjiang.

In addition, in May of this year, a spokesperson for the UK Prime Minister's Office stated that it would not close Confucius Institutes in the UK, which contradicted Sunak's statement during last year's election and was subsequently attacked by many Conservatives.

As for how to understand the repeatability of the British policy towards China, some commentary articles point out that this actually reflects the challenges faced by the Sunak government. On the one hand, he attempted to guide the diplomatic landscape of Britain after Brexit, thus unable to distance himself from either China or the United States; On the other hand, he needs to weigh the different voices of the Conservative Party in its stance on China. It is expected that the next general election in the UK will be held no later than January 2025, and according to the results of the local council elections held in May this year, the Labour Party is currently leading the polls for the next general election in the UK.

It is worth mentioning that before Cleverley's visit, the United States and some European countries gradually increased their contact with China. Since November last year, leaders from Germany, Spain, and France have successively visited China. Since June this year, four cabinet level officials from the US government have started their trip to China.