British Prime Minister Keir Starmer told Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday that he wanted to build a “sophisticated relationship” with Beijing to boost growth and security, signalling a reset after years of strained ties.
On the most important day of his four-day visit to China, the first by a British prime minister in eight years, Starmer held an 80-minute summit with Xi at the Great Hall of the People before they lunched together. He will later meet Premier Li Qiang.
“China is a vital player on the global stage, and it’s vital that we build a more sophisticated relationship where we can identify opportunities to collaborate, but of course, also allow a meaningful dialogue on areas where we disagree,” Starmer told Xi at the start of their meeting.
Xi said ties with Britain had gone through “twists and turns” that did not serve the interests of either country and that China stood ready to develop a long-term strategic partnership.
“We can deliver a result that can withstand the test of history,” the Chinese leader said, flanked by his top ministers.
Starmer, whose centre-left Labour Party government has struggled to deliver the growth it promised, has made improving relations with the world’s second-largest economy a priority, despite lingering misgivings about espionage and human rights.
PM Starmer said “really good progress” had been made on issues including whisky tariffs and visa-free travel during his meeting with Xi.
“We made some really good progress on tariffs for whisky, on visa-free travel to China and on information exchange and cooperation on irregular migration, focusing particularly on small boats and engine parts,” Starmer told reporters, calling it “a very good constructive meeting with real outcomes”.
Starmer is the latest Western leader to engage in a flurry of diplomacy with China, as nations hedge against unpredictability from the United States under President Donald Trump.
Trump’s on-off threats of trade tariffs and pledges to grab control of Greenland, an autonomous territory of Denmark, have rankled long-standing allies like Britain.
Starmer’s visit immediately follows that of Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, who signed an economic deal with Beijing to tear down trade barriers, drawing Trump’s ire.
Kerry Brown, professor of Chinese studies at King’s College London, said he expected a number of deals between Britain and China would be announced to show how their relationship has improved.
Starmer is being accompanied by more than 50 business leaders, another signal that he is seeking economic wins.
Starmer said he raised issues such as the trial of Hong Kong pro-democracy media mogul Jimmy Lai and China’s human rights record during his meeting with Xi.
“We did have a respectful discussion about that, raised those issues as you would expect … It gives us great opportunities, but it also gives us the opportunity to have those discussions about areas where we disagree,” Starmer told reporters in Beijing when asked if the subjects had been raised.
Tackling migrant smuggling gangs
Starmer has adopted a new policy of engagement with China after ties deteriorated for years under previous Conservative governments, when London curbed some Chinese investment over national security worries and expressed concern over a crackdown on political freedoms in Hong Kong.
“I made the promise 18 months ago, when we were elected into government, that I would make Britain face outwards again,” Starmer told Xi.
“Because, as we all know, events abroad affect everything that happens back in our home countries, to prices on the supermarket shelves to how secure we feel.”
Kemi Badenoch, the leader of Britain’s opposition Conservative Party, said on Wednesday she would not have gone to China because of the security risks the country poses.
British security services have said China routinely spies on the government. China has denied the claims.
In a sign of how the countries can work together, Downing Street said Starmer and Xi would announce that Britain and China would jointly tackle gangs involved in trafficking illegal migrants.
The deal will focus on reducing the use of Chinese-made engines for small boats that transport people across Europe to claim asylum.
British and Chinese officials will share intelligence to identify smugglers’ supply routes and work with Chinese manufacturers to prevent legitimate businesses from being exploited by organised crime, Downing Street said.
After arriving late on Wednesday, Starmer dined at a restaurant in the capital known for its mushroom-laden dishes that also hosted former US treasury secretary Janet Yellen during her 2023 visit.
He practised pronouncing the Chinese word for thank you – “xie xie” – with restaurant staff as he posed for photographs, a video posted on Weibo showed.
