GOLDEN ERA WITH CHINA OVER: SUNAK
PM tells banquet Beijing poses ‘systemic challenge’ to values, but stops short of seeing it as ‘threat’
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has called for Britain to “evolve” its policy approach to China, saying in his first major foreign policy address since taking office last month that the so-called golden era between the two countries had ended.
The idea put forth in previous Tory administrations that trade would lead to social and political reform in China was naive and a new approach to relations with Beijing was necessary, Sunak said.
“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 in a speech at the Lord Mayor’s Banquet in London.
Under former prime minister David Cameron, Britain had pushed for greater investment and economic ties as part of what was dubbed a “golden era” of cooperation between the countries that saw President Xi Jinping make a state visit to Britain in 2015.
However, Britain should not resort to Cold War rhetoric and must recognise China’s significance in global affairs in crafting its policy, from climate change to global economic stability, Sunak said. “The US, Canada, Australia, Japan and many others understand this, too. So together we’ll manage this sharpening competition, including with diplomacy and engagement.”
The Lord Mayor’s Banquet was a chance for Sunak to set out his stall on foreign policy, just over a month after he succeeded Liz
Truss as prime minister on October 26. Truss resigned last month after a tumultuous seven weeks as prime minister.
British prime ministers have traditionally used the annual banquet, which celebrates the newly elected lord mayor of the City of London, to address business leaders, international dignitaries and policy experts.
“In the face of these challenges, short-termism or wishful thinking will not suffice,” Sunak said. “We can’t depend on Cold War arguments or approaches, or mere sentimentality about the past.
“This means being stronger in defending our values and the openness on which our prosperity depends.
“It means delivering a stronger economy at home, as the foundation of our strength abroad. And it means standing up to our competitors, not with grand rhetoric but with robust pragmatism.”
As chancellor of the exchequer under former prime minister Boris Johnson, Sunak had little foreign policy experience. Much of his political career was spent in the treasury.
Since taking office, much of Sunak’s time has focused on stabilising the British economy and restoring public confidence after his predecessor’s approach to an ongoing cost-of-living crisis and double-digit inflation unnerved financial markets.
However, Sunak has been working to burnish his foreign policy credentials.
In recent weeks, he has travelled to Ukraine to meet President Volodymyr Zelensky, attended the COP27 climate summit in Egypt and met world leaders at
the Group of 20 (G20) conference in Bali.
A meeting between Sunak and Xi on the sidelines of the G20 was cancelled after Western leaders held emergency talks to discuss a missile strike in Poland.
Sunak is widely expected to take a more pragmatic approach to Beijing than his predecessor, who had sought to label China a “threat” alongside Russia as part of an ongoing refresh of the British government’s integrated review of defence and diplomatic strategy.
However, a vocal wing of Sunak’s Conservative Party has been pushing for the government to take a more confrontational approach to Beijing, particularly when it comes to allegations of human rights violations in Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region or the controversial Hong Kong national security law.
In Monday’s speech, he stressed the need for economic security, pointing to his government’s move to block the Chineseled takeover of Britain’s biggest microchip factory and Britain’s earlier blocking of Chinese-made telecommunications equipment from its 5G network.
Deepening Britain’s ties with the Indo-Pacific and “reinvigorating” its relationships with Europe were also part of his government’s evolving foreign policy approach,” Sunak said.