Rishi Sunak on China: Britain’s new Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has now clarified his foreign policy on China to a great extent. He said on Monday (28 November) that China has presented a challenge to Britain’s ‘values and interests’. His statement came at a time when the BBC accused the Chinese police of beating one of their journalists and the British government also condemned Beijing over the incident.
In his first major foreign policy speech, Rishi Sunak said the so-called “golden era” of UK-China relations is over. In a speech at the Lord Mayor’s banquet in London, Sunak said Britain now “will need to evolve its approach to China”.
‘Can’t easily ignore China’s importance’
Britain’s Indian-origin Prime Minister said, “We believe that China continues to present a systemic challenge to our values and interests… a challenge that is growing more acute as it moves towards ever more totalitarianism.” grows. We simply cannot ignore China’s importance in world affairs, global economic stability or issues such as climate change. The US, Canada, Australia, Japan and many other countries also understand this.”
News Reels
Clarifying his foreign policy on China, Sunak said that we will manage this intense competition with diplomacy and engagement. His government will prioritize deepening trade and security ties with Indo-Pacific allies. However, now it will be very important to see what reaction will come from China on Sunak’s statement.
Foreign Secretary also condemned
This speech of Sunak on China is considered very important after the alleged beating of BBC journalist. British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly has also condemned it. He said that this is a very disturbing incident. Cleverly tweeted, “Freedom of the media and freedom to protest must be respected… No country is immune to this.”
read this also- In the first big speech on foreign policy, Rishi Sunak showed his attitude towards China and Russia