UK's Keir Starmer visits China as Beijing courts US allies

"The British leader is seeking to strengthen political and business ties between the two countries, despite a tense decade, as relations between Western countries and the United States under Donald Trump become more strained. Starmer, criticized by some opponents in Britain for not taking a hard enough line on China, said the UK must remain vigilant on security threats but could not afford to ignore the world's second-largest economy."

""It doesn't make sense to stick our head in the ground and bury it in the sand when it comes to China, it's in our interests to engage," Starmer told reporters on the flight to China. "It's going to be a really important trip for us and we'll make some real progress." An honor guard greeted Starmer at the Beijing airport, with his main political appointments set to follow on Thursday"

"After several years, primarily around the COVID pandemic, when the Chinese government made and requested very few foreign visits, Beijing has extended invitations to a string of Western leaders in the past few months. Delegations from France, South Korea, Ireland and Finland have all visited China over the winter. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney was there just days before his pointed speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, with its not-so-thinly veiled jabs at Trump, raised eyebrows."

Keir Starmer arrived in Beijing with a business delegation for a three-day visit, the first such trip in more than seven years. The visit aims to strengthen political and commercial ties despite a tense decade and growing strain in Western relations with the United States under Donald Trump. Starmer said the UK must remain vigilant on security threats but cannot afford to ignore the world's second-largest economy and emphasized engagement. An honor guard greeted him on arrival and senior political meetings were scheduled. Several Western leaders and delegations have recently visited China, and Germany's chancellor was expected to visit in late February.

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