Keir Starmer is on the first visit to China by a UK prime minister since 2018. He is seeking to strengthen political and business ties with Beijing as relations between Western countries and the United States become more volatile.
Starmer, whose approach to China has drawn criticism from some British and U.S. politicians, said the UK must remain alert to potential security threats but cannot ignore the economic opportunities presented by the world’s second-largest economy.
“It's going to be a really important trip for us and we'll make some real progress.” Starmer told reporters aboard his plane on Wednesday (28 January).
Travelling with a delegation of more than 50 British business leaders, Starmer is due to meet President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang in Beijing before heading to Shanghai for talks with local executives.
Economic cooperation is expected to dominate the agenda, including trade, investment and market access in areas such as finance, green technology and advanced manufacturing.
The visit could signal a shift after years of strained UK–China relations. Those ties have been marked by Beijing’s crackdown on political freedoms in Hong Kong, China’s backing of Russia in the war in Ukraine and the UK's ban on Huawei 5G equipment its phone networks.
For Beijing, Starmer’s trip offers an opportunity to present China as a stable and reliable partner at a time of global uncertainty.
Despite the renewed diplomatic engagement, relations have been shaped by a series of UK security decisions in recent years.
Britain has banned TikTok from government devices following a security review that cited risks to sensitive data, while stressing that the restriction does not apply to personal devices.
In addition, the complete removal of Huawei equipment from UK 5G networks is scheduled to take place by the end of 2027 and the UK has banned the purchase of new Huawei 5G equipment. The government cited advice from the National Cyber Security Centre that the associated security risks could no longer be effectively managed.
Trust has been further tested by espionage concerns, including a now-dropped spy case involving allegations against two Britons with links to China. Both denied the charges and the case was dropped by the Crown Prosecution Service.
At the same time, MPs across parties have continued to raise warnings about China’s influence, even as the government recently gave the green light to plans for a new Chinese embassy in London.
Together, these steps reflect a pattern of caution in which the UK has treated China as a strategic risk, often without explicitly framing it as an adversary.
Starmer’s China visit also comes as European and other Western countries step up diplomacy with Beijing amid uncertainty surrounding U.S. foreign policy under U.S. President Donald Trump.
The UK leader’s trip follows tensions with Trump over his threats to seize Greenland, criticism of Britain’s decision to cede sovereignty of the Chagos Archipelago to Mauritius, and comments that NATO allies avoided front-line combat in Afghanistan.
On Saturday (24 January), the U.S. leader threatened to impose a 100% tariff on Canadian goods if Prime Minister Mark Carney signed a trade deal with China, underscoring Washington’s increasingly confrontational stance.
Starmer insisted Britain could strengthen economic ties with China without undermining its close relationship with the United States.
“The relationship we have with the U.S. is one of the closest relationships we hold, on defence, security, intelligence and also on trade and lots of areas,” he said.
He declined to say whether he would raise the case of imprisoned Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai with Chinese leaders or ask Beijing to pressure Russia to end the war in Ukraine, but said he hoped to make “some progress” on expanding visa-free travel between the two countries.
“I'm a pragmatist, a British pragmatist applying common sense,” Starmer said, rejecting the idea that the UK must choose between the U.S. and China.
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Start your day informed with AnewZ Morning Brief: here are the top news stories for the 28 January, covering the latest developments you need to know.
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