British Foreign Secretary David Lammy has made his first visit to China since the Labour Party took power, and indicated willingness to improve stalled bilateral relations.
Lammy held talks with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Beijing on Friday.
The Labour Party swept the Conservative Party out of power for the first time in 14 years in July’s general election.
It has criticized the Conservatives for “inconsistency” over China. The Labour government says it plans to take a stable and pragmatic approach to Beijing.
Lammy said during his talks with Wang, “Neither of us has an interest in escalation or greater instability,” suggesting Britain will seek cooperation with China in such fields as trade and climate.
The British government stressed that the Foreign Secretary also raised issues where the two sides have different opinions. These include Hong Kong, where crackdowns on freedom of speech are intensifying, and human rights in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.
The government also said the British and Chinese foreign chiefs committed to holding regular discussions across their respective governments at the ministerial level.
A major British newspaper reported that Britain had asked for a visit by former Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen to the country to be postponed, “so as not to anger China” ahead of Lammy’s trip.
China also apparently hopes to stabilize relations with Britain, amid trade friction with the United States and the European Union.