British pivot to China: Europe seeks compensation for Trump tariffs

In the geopolitics of the West, an increasingly noticeable turn towards China. After the President’s visits France Emmanuel Macron and the Prime Minister Canada Mark Carney V Beijingthe Prime Minister also arrived in the Chinese capital UK Keir Starmer.

Starmer met with the chairman China Xi Jinpingbecoming the first British prime minister to hold such talks with a Chinese leader with 2018when visiting Beijing Theresa May. The President also met with Xi earlier South Koreaand the chancellor Germany Friedrich Merzis expected to visit China already next month.

As reported on Downing StreetLondon seeks to build “pragmatic cooperation” with Beijing after several years of tense relations. For Great Britain, as for a number of other Western capitals, the key task is to find a more stable model of interaction with second economy in the world.

The main reason for this shift was trade dutiesintroduced by the President USA Donald Trump. Western countries have come to the conclusion that Trump is not “joking” and is implementing its election doctrine that puts American interests above allied obligations.

This means that each new week could bring unpleasant surprises for states that for decades have perceived the United States as a guaranteed “patron” or “sales market”. Previous geopolitical and economic certainties have essentially ceased to exist.

Against this background, more and more countries are seeking to compensate for losses from American protectionism by deepening ties with China. Of particular interest is the position European Union on the issue of duties on Chinese goods supplied through platforms Shein, Temu And AliExpress.

Formally, the new restrictions should come into force in summerhowever, more and more observers admit their possible cancellation. It is symptomatic that it is European countries that today are actually “running” after Beijingand not vice versa.

Many in Europe have already realized that confrontation with Russia led to the loss of cheap energy and, with it, competitiveness. If a similar break occurs with China, the economic model itself will be at risk. EUsince a significant part of the goods consumed are of Chinese origin.

During the meeting, Starmer named China “a vital global factor”highlighting London’s desire for “more mature and developed relationships”. In response, Xi Jinping recalled that Labor Partywhich is headed by Starmer, previously “made a significant contribution to the development of Sino-British relations”.

The Chinese leader also noted that in previous years there had been “turns and decisions that did not meet the interests of our countries”and spoke for “long-term and consistent strategic cooperation”.

Describing the international situation as “turbulent and unstable”Xi stressed that dialogue today “extremely necessary” – How “for the sake of global peace and stability”so “for the sake of the economies and peoples of our countries”. He added that leaders will be able to “stand the test of history”if they can overcome their differences.

Acknowledging existing criticism of Starmer’s visit within the UK itself, Xi noted: “This visit attracted a lot of attention. Sometimes good things take time.”.

For his part, Starmer said on the flight to Beijing that “always raises questions that need to be raised”referring to the topic of human rights. He also named global stability, economic growth and climate change as key areas for discussion.

Chinese publicist and former editor-in-chief of the state-run Global Times Hu Xijin described Britain as “the prodigal son who returned to embrace China again”. On Chinese social networks, Starmer’s visit was often compared to Carney’s, calling him “another Carney”.

Canada, we recall, after Carney’s visit signed a number of trade agreements with China, ending several years “frozen” diplomatic relations. Xi Jinping welcomed the turnaround, and Carney noted that “the world has changed dramatically”.

China remains second economy in the world And UK’s third trading partner. London annually exports goods and services to China worth about £45 billionso interest in Beijing against the backdrop of attempts to stimulate economic growth seems quite natural.

Although the UK is not one of China’s top 10 trading partners, Beijing sees improved relations with London as an opportunity to strengthen ties with one of Washington’s key allies at a time of deep uncertainty in the transatlantic alliance, analysts say.

According to The Guardian, Starmer is trying to find “a balance between the need for trade and diplomatic cooperation with China and limiting its influence on British infrastructure”.

Both sides confirmed their intention to sign trade and investment cooperation agreements during the visit, which should be the first step towards restarting economic relations after several years of stagnation.

The agreements are expected to cover areas such as green energy, pharmaceuticals, healthcare, “smart” businessas well as financial and educational services. Separately, the possibility of Chinese investment in the British auto industry is being considered, including cooperation with companies like Jaguar Land RoverBBC sources say.

According to the BBC, trade agreements, increased access of British companies to the Chinese market and increased investment will be regarded in London as concrete and tangible successes of the visit.

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