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China

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Last reviewed: 27 January 2009

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INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

Relations with the International Community

China has said that it wishes to pursue an independent foreign policy of peace in order to preserve its independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity.  The concept of ‘harmonious’ development, at the heart of China’s domestic policy, has been extended to its foreign policy as China aims to create a favourable international environment to continue its agenda of reform and opening up.  To date, China has focused on developing close relations with its neighbours, major partners and international organisations.

In support of its desire to promote a foreign policy of peace, China is playing an increasingly active role in international affairs. It has supported the international war against terrorism, including in the UN Security Council (where it holds one of the five Permanent Seats) and voted in favour of limited sanctions on North Korea. China has played a mainly constructive role in supporting UN Special Envoy Gambari’s mission to Burma. China moved from more or less unconditional support of Sudan, supporting UNSCR 1769 which mandated a hybrid peacekeeping force in Darfur, and has deployed 315 peacekeepers. China voted for UNSCR 1803, which mandated a third round of sanctions on Iran, and has begun to put the squeeze on financial transactions with Iran. However, China’s recent use of its veto (only the third since 1999) over a UNSCR on Zimbabwe demonstrates its increasing confidence to protect its own interests.

See also the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs

EU-China Relations

EU relations with China were established in 1975 and are currently governed by the 1985 EU-China Trade and Cooperation Agreement.  The EU is important for China’s vision of a multipolar world and China is arguably the EU’s most important relationship outside its own neighbourhood and the US.  In January 2007 the EU and China launched negotiations on a single and over-arching Partnership and Co-operation Agreement (PCA) to reflect the breadth and depth of today’s strategic partnership.  The PCA will set a broad framework for the EU’s relationship with China across a wide range of areas and, in part, will replace the 1985 Trade and Economic Co-operation Agreement.  Areas of cooperation currently under negotiation include issues such as non-proliferation, human rights and climate change.

Today, the EU is China’s second largest trade partner and China is the EU’s largest partner.  This is reflected in the rapidly growing trade in goods in recent years, rising by 20% per annum to reach €302 billion in 2007.  There is however, increasing concern in the EU at the growing size of China’s trade surplus with the EU. At the 2007 EU-China Summit, both sides agreed to hold an annual High Level Dialogue Mechanism, to discuss issues affecting the trade imbalance, in order to find concrete means to increase trade in a balanced way.  The first of these meetings took place in April 2008, establishing a framework for future exchanges.

Within the maturing EU-China comprehensive strategic partnership, dialogue and cooperation have been increased on key international issues (e.g. Iran, Sudan and Burma), and on key issues of globalisation, such as climate change and Africa/development.  Apart from regular political, trade and economic dialogue meetings, there are over 24 sectoral dialogues and agreements ranging from Human Rights to industrial policy, education and culture.    

The ‘Guidelines on the EU’s Foreign and Security Policy in East Asia’, published in December 2007, form the backbone of the EU’s policy towards China and the wider region.  You can find a summary setting out the architecture of EU-China relations on the EU Commission website.

UK-CHINA BILATERAL RELATIONS

Bilateral relations are excellent and have undergone a period of rapid expansion since May 2004 when the former Prime Minister, Tony Blair and Premier Wen Jiabao signed a Joint Statement announcing a “comprehensive strategic partnership” and a commitment to hold annual Summit meetings between the two Premiers. Britain remains China’s largest European investor, Chinese students make up the largest number from any single nation in the UK, and China publishes more joint scientific research papers with the UK than any other European country.

Recent Visits

  • The Prime Minister visited China on 18-19 January and again on 22-25 August 2008. In Beijing he met President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao.  
  •  David Miliband, Foreign Secretary (February 2008 and October 2008)
  • John Hutton, Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (January 2008) 
  • Lord Digby Jones, Minister for Trade and Investment (January 2008)
  • Rhodri Morgan, First Minister of Wales (March 2008)
  • Lord Malloch-Brown, Secretary of State (April 2008)
  • Alistair Darling, Chancellor of the Exchequer (April 2008)
  • Liam Byrne, Minister for Immigration (April 2008)
  • Tessa Jowell, Olympics Minister (August 2008)
  • Gerry Sutcliffe, Minister for Sport (August 2008) 
  • Andy Burnham, DCMS Secretary of State (August 2008)
  • Lord Digby Jones, Minister of State for Trade & Investment (August 2008)
  • Alan Johnson Secretary of State for Health October 2008
  • Hilary Benn Secretary of State for DEFRA November 2009
  • Stephen Timms, Financial Secretary to the Treasury January 2009
  • Bill Rammell, Minister of State (January 2009)

Inward visits

  • Premier Wen visited London on 12-13 September 2006 for the annual bilateral Prime Ministerial level summit. Bo Xilai, Minister of Commerce; Li Zhaoxing, then Foreign Minister; and Ma Kai, Minister of National Reform and Development accompanied Premier Wen.
  • President Hu paid a State Visit to the UK on 8-10 November 2005 and attended the G8 outreach event at Gleneagles in July 2005. On his State Visit he was accompanied by the same Chinese Ministers above.
  • Dai Bingguo – now State Councillor (Foreign Affairs) (March 2007)
  • Cai Wu – State Council Information Office Minister – (April 2007)
  • Bo Xilai – Minister of Finance (June 2007)
  • Yang Jiechi, Foreign Minister (December 2007)
  • Tang Jiaxuan, then State Councillor for Foreign Affairs (February 2008)
  • Wu Hongbo, Assistant Foreign Minister (November 2008)
  • Liu Yandong, State Councilor (November 2008)
  • Liu Qi, Chinese Politburo Member and Beijing Party Secretary (November 2008)

UK objectives

We are working to step up our engagement with China across the board. This reflects China's increasing economic weight and political influence, and our desire to work with China to tackle the many and complex challenges the international community faces today. Our broad objectives are:

  • Getting the best for the UK from China’s rise:  this is about getting China to see the UK as a global hub; boosting our business, educational, scientific and cultural gains from the bilateral relationship. It’s also about ensuring the UK has the right domestic policies in place to benefit from China’s rise.
  • Fostering China’s emergence as a responsible global player:  this is about encouraging an approach of responsible sovereignty on international and global issues, from proliferation and international security to sustainable development and climate change.  
  • Promoting sustainable development, modernisation and internal reform in China:  this is about influencing China’s evolving domestic policies, helping China manage the risks of its rapid development
More More details on our strategy is available in ‘The UK and China: A Framework for engagement’which is downloadable at http://www.fco.gov.uk/resources/en/pdf/4103709/5476465/5550005/uk-and-china

The main channels of communication / dialogue

  • Prime Ministerial Summit - dialogue between the Prime Minister and Premier Wen, reinforced by Ministers and senior officials forging closer links with their counterparts. Most recent was held in January in Beijing. 
  • China Task Force – is chaired by the Chancellor of the Exchequer and is made up of leading members of the business, education and science communities, providing high level advice to the Government on UK-China relations. A counterpart body in China, made up of officials, is headed by State Councillor Dai Bingguo.   
  • UK-China Economic & Financial Dialogue - this high level strategic economic dialogue was agreed during the Prime Minister’s January 2008 visit to China. The first meeting of the Dialogue, chaired by the Chancellor and Vice Premier Wang Qishan was held in Beijing in April 2008. 
  • Sector specific Ministerial level dialogues (e.g. Education Summits, the Sustainable Development Dialogue) and a public diplomacy strategy delivered through our China network are other key tools. 
  • UK-China Human Rights Dialogue - provides an open channel of communication with the Chinese government about human rights concerns and allows issues to be discussed in greater depth. The 17th  round of the Dialogue took place in London on 12-13 January 2009. The main themes raised were disability, mental health and China’s co-operation with international human rights mechanisms.

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