The Golden Era Is Over: Why Did Sunak Change His 'Soft' Stances on China?

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak called for a new approach with the Chinese government, saying that the golden era between the UK and China has ended.

During the traditional banquet hosted every year by the Mayor of London in the Guildhall, Sunak criticized China’s human rights violations while noting China’s importance in the international arena, which he said could not be ignored.

He said: “Let’s be clear: the so-called ‘golden era’ is over, along with the naive idea that trade would lead to social and political reform.”

Sunak was criticized during the race he ran last summer alongside then-Foreign Minister Liz Truss, for his “soft” positions on China, and then criticized again weeks ago when he declared, on his way to Bali to attend the G-20 summit, that he did not intend to consider China as a “threat” to national security.

He said at the time that China is an essential part of the global economy, and the UK must conduct a dialogue with it to face common global challenges.

He was scheduled to meet on the sidelines of the summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping, but the meeting was canceled at the last minute under the pretext of a “scheduling conflict.”

 

Conflict’s Reasons

Referring to the current protests taking place in several Chinese cities against the closure, reimposed by the Cines authorities in response to a new rise in COVID-19 cases, the guardian quoted Sunak pointing out: “Instead of listening to their people’s protests, the Chinese government has chosen to crack down further, including by assaulting a BBC journalist.”

Bloomberg quoted a source from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office as saying that the Secretary of State James Cleverly summoned the Chinese ambassador, Zheng Zeguang, over the treatment of photographer Edward Lawrence.

The BBC said that Lawrence was “beaten and kicked” by the Chinese police in Shanghai while covering the protests, pointing out that he was arrested and handcuffed while working as an accredited journalist.

For its part, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs objected to the statement of the Commission and said that Lawrence “did not identify himself as a journalist.

In an interview with Al-Estiklal, the expert on international relations, Zouhair Attouf, said: “There are many major causes of tension between China and Britain. The most recent of which was China’s attack on a British journalist during the demonstrations in China. But before that, Britain experienced crises with China in what was known as the pilots’ crisis, as China deliberately attracted British pilots to train its army. This was rejected by Britain decisively, although it does not contradict British law.”

He added: “Bloomberg reported in November that China considered Britain to have overstepped its authority and violated the rights of Nexperia when London decided to block the company’s acquisition of a Welsh semiconductor factory.”

He stressed that: “In the same month, Britain banned the installation of Chinese-made surveillance cameras in sensitive government sites and is considering removing the cameras entirely, for reasons it considered a threat to national security. Moreover, the opposing positions of the two countries on the citizens of Hong Kong deepen the tensions.”

 

Tense Relations

Relations between London and Beijing have deteriorated in the past decade, as Britain has expressed concern that opening the door to Chinese investment could endanger national security. London has also criticized Beijing’s trade practices and human rights record in Hong Kong and Xinjiang.

Downing Street said the challenges posed by China were “systemic” and “protracted.” It added that China is a country with a system of values ​​fundamentally different from ours, with an authoritarian leadership bent on reshaping the international system.

Sunak was expected to take a more flexible approach with Beijing than former Prime Minister Liz Truss.

Yet, during his first foreign policy speech, Sunak said that China is meaningfully striving for global hegemony, using all arms of state power.

Sunak considered that in light of these challenges, short-term planning is insufficient, and the UK cannot rely on the arguments or positions of the Cold War era.

The new review of relations with China was initiated by Britain in recent weeks against the backdrop of pressure from parliament to adopt a tougher policy, while Sunak’s government faces a difficult choice between addressing security concerns and preserving economic interests with China.

According to government data, total trade in goods and services (exports and imports) between Britain and China reached 92.9 billion pounds sterling until the end of the second quarter of 2022, down 1.6%, or 1.5 billion pounds sterling, from the end of the second quarter of 2021.

 

Rising Conflict

In October 2022, relations between Britain and China witnessed a state of tension following an altercation between a Hong Kong demonstrator and diplomats at the Beijing Consulate in Manchester, at a time when the British Ministry of Defense warned that former British pilots were involved in training programs in China.

London issued an intelligence alert after it became clear that China had successfully attracted nearly 30 former British pilots to participate in its military training.

While British laws do not prevent its military from participating periodically in training missions with foreign armies, the Ministry of Defense has expressed its deep concern about the intensification of China’s recruitment of retired pilots since 2019 and confirmed that it has taken “decisive steps” to reduce it.

Sunak stressed that Britain should defend its values ​​and democracy with actions, not just words, and that “Cold War approaches” are insufficient to meet the current challenges, so Britain needs a qualitative leap in its approach.

He stressed that the British government will present in 2023 an updated review of the United Kingdom’s security, defense, and foreign policy issues.

He added that Britain would work not only by increasing investments in defense and security but also by strengthening partnerships with allied countries around the world, including the Commonwealth of Nations, the United States, the Gulf states, and “Israel.”