Foreign Secretary met Foreign Minister of the
People's Republic of China, Wang Yi, in Beijing today.
The Foreign Secretary set out that as fellow Permanent Members of
the UN Security Council, it is a necessity that the UK and China
increase bilateral engagement. He made clear that, as global
players, both countries have an obligation to work together to
find pragmatic solutions to complex challenges.
Areas of pragmatic, mutually beneficial cooperation were clear.
This included working together on achieving the global
green transition; making greater efforts on development and
global health; and the safe use of AI. The Foreign
Secretary reiterated his commitment to promoting secure and
resilient growth through increased trade and investment which
creates jobs, drives innovation, boosts productivity and provides
economic stability and certainty for the UK economy. They
agreed that the UK and China can support both countries' growth
objectives, with China as the world's second largest economy
and the UK's 4th largest trading partner.
The Foreign Secretary also raised a number of foreign policy and
security matters, including Russia's war in Ukraine,
where he stated how both the UK and China have a shared
interest in European peace and ending the war. He reaffirmed
that concerns over China's supply
of equipment to Russia's military industrial
complex risks damaging China's relationships with
Europe whilst helping to sustain Russia's war.
The Foreign Secretary urged Wang Yi to take all
measures to investigate and to prevent Chinese companies from
supplying Russia's military. The Foreign Ministers agreed to
continue to discuss this and other broader foreign policy issues,
such as the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
Human Rights were discussed, including in Xinjiang, and
the Foreign Secretary referenced this as an area which the UK and
China must engage, even where viewpoints diverge. Hong Kong
is a shared interest, and the Foreign Secretary
raised serious concerns around the implementation of
the National Security Law and the ongoing treatment of British
national Jimmy Lai, again calling for his release.
The meeting was constructive across the full breadth of the
bilateral relationship, from areas of pragmatic cooperation to
issues of contention. Both the Foreign Secretary and Foreign
Minister agreed that maintaining channels of communication was
essential and committed to holding regular discussions across
their respective governments at Ministerial level.
