Rishi Sunak: Golden era of UK-China relations is over

Rishi Sunak has said the alleged "golden era" of relations with China is over, arsenic helium vowed to "evolve" the UK's stance towards the country.

In his archetypal overseas argumentation speech, the PM said the person economical ties of the erstwhile decennary had been "naïve".

He said the UK present needed to regenerate wishful reasoning with "robust pragmatism" towards competitors.

But helium warned against "Cold War rhetoric", adding that China's planetary value could not beryllium ignored.

Mr Sunak has faced unit from Tory backbenchers to toughen the UK's stance connected China since helium took implicit arsenic Tory person and UK premier curate past month.

The speech, to the Lord Mayor's Banquet successful London, comes aft protests successful China implicit the play against the country's strict Covid lockdown laws.

Police person made respective arrests, and a BBC writer was detained portion covering a protestation successful Shanghai connected Sunday. He was beaten and kicked by the constabulary during his arrest, and held for respective hours earlier being released.

Mr Sunak told the assemblage of concern leaders and overseas argumentation experts that, successful the look of the protests, China had "chosen to ace down further, including by assaulting a BBC journalist".

"We recognise China poses a systemic situation to our values and interests, a situation that grows much acute arsenic it moves towards adjacent greater authoritarianism," helium said.

He added that the "golden era" of UK-China relations was "over", on with the "naïve idea" that much commercialized with the West would pb to Chinese governmental reform.

The operation "golden era" is associated with person economical ties nether erstwhile premier curate David Cameron - but relations betwixt London and Beijing person since deteriorated.

However, Mr Sunak stressed that "we cannot simply disregard China's value successful satellite affairs - to planetary economical stableness oregon issues similar clime change".

He added that the UK would enactment with allies including the US, Canada, Australia, and Japan to "manage this sharpening competition, including with diplomacy and engagement".

"It means lasting up to our competitors, not with expansive rhetoric but with robust pragmatism," helium added.

Mr Sunak's predecessor Liz Truss was reportedly readying to re-categorise China arsenic a "threat" to the UK arsenic portion of a reappraisal of its overseas policy.

In his speech, Mr Sunak echoed the operation utilized successful the reappraisal - that China is simply a "systemic challenge". He said determination would beryllium much details of the reappraisal successful the caller year.

But the "robust pragmatism" enactment successful the code was criticised by erstwhile Tory person Iain Duncan Smith, 1 of a fig of backbenchers pushing for a tougher line.

Reacting to a preview of the speech, helium wrote successful the Daily Express that China had go a "clear and contiguous menace to america and our allies".

"I wonderment if robust pragmatism present sounds much and much similar appeasement," helium added.

Labour's shadiness overseas caput David Lammy called the code "thin arsenic gruel", accusing the premier curate of "flip-flopping its rhetoric connected China".

Elsewhere successful his speech, Mr Sunak promised to proceed enactment for Ukraine, adding: "We volition basal with Ukraine for arsenic agelong arsenic it takes".

He promised to "maintain oregon increase" British subject assistance to the state adjacent year, and supply caller aerial enactment to support civilians and captious infrastructure.

Mr Sunak visited Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky earlier this month, successful his archetypal sojourn to Kyiv since entering Downing Street.

During the visit, helium announced the UK would proviso Ukraine with further anti-aircraft guns and radars, and summation the grooming connection to Ukraine's equipped forces.