Starmer set for talks with Chinese president Xi at G20 summit
Starmer set to become first British PM to meet with Chinese leader in more than half a decade
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Your support makes all the difference.Sir Keir Starmer will meet Chinese president Xi Jinping at the G20 summit in Brazil, Downing Street has confirmed.
He will be the first British prime minister to meet the Chinese leader in more than half a decade when they hold talks in Rio de Janeiro on Monday and has pledged to have “serious, pragmatic discussions” when they speak.
The Xi meeting will be one in a series of discussions the Prime Minister is expected to have with world leaders at the two-day summit, with conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East likely to be high on the agenda.
US president Joe Biden’s move to allow Ukraine to use US-supplied long-range missiles to strike inside Russia emerged on Sunday evening ahead of the summit getting underway.
Speaking to reporters en route to the summit on Sunday, Sir Keir said: “I am planning to have a bilateral with President Xi at the G20. I think that’s important.
“We are both global players, global powers, both permanent members of the Security Council and of the G20.
“China’s economy is obviously the second biggest in the world. It’s one of our biggest trading partners and therefore I will be having serious pragmatic discussions with the president when I meet him.”
Trade could be one of the issues that come up for discussion amid concern over US president-elect Donald Trump’s threats to impose tariffs on imports.
Sir Keir will be the first UK prime minister to meet the Chinese premier since Theresa May in 2018.
Asked if he wanted a better relationship with Beijing than previous governments, Sir Keir added: “Given the size of the economy it is very important that we have a pragmatic and serious relationship and that’s what I intend to pursue.”
Foreign secretary David Lammy visited China in October and pledged that the government would bring “consistency” to the UK’s relations with the country.
He said that there had not been “sufficient contact” between London and Beijing under his predecessors, particularly on human rights issues.
However, the move is still likely to spark concern from some in Westminster who are sceptical of closer relations with Beijing amid human rights and national security worries.
Former Tory leader Sir Iain Duncan-Smith, who has been sacntioned by Beijing following criticisms of the regime, told The Independent that “those suffering genocide and slave labour under the brutal hands of Xi will feel betrayed” by Sir Keir’s decision to meet with the Chinese president.
“With sanctioned MP’s like me clear that China and its axis of totalitarian states pose a huge threat to us in the free world”, he added.
Sir Iain warned that “trade with China is a one way street”, saying: “They are going to dump electric cars on the UK. They use slave labour and state subsidy to break the WTO rules and have driven out many British and Western companies.
“Starmer will be seen as weak by Xi who will see him as coming to him In a ‘Kow Tow’ begging for trade at a time many middle sized companies are leaving.”
The European Union increased tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles after an internal investigation concluded last year that state subsidies to domestic carmakers were unfairly undermining European rivals.
Sir Iain added: “Will he tell Xi they have to change their ways?
“No, I am sure he will ignore the world’s greatest threat to the democratic global order, and ignore the support they are giving Russia. What’s the point of British foreign policy if it ignores all that?”
Sir Keir arrived in Rio in the early hours of Monday morning UK time and was greeted by the British ambassador to Brazil Stephanie Al-Qaq.
It is thought that during the summit he will call on leaders to go further and faster in their support for Ukraine and warn of “unfathomable consequences” if Putin succeeds.
While Sir Keir was in the air on his way to the summit, AP reported that President Biden has authorised Ukraine’s use of US-supplied long-range missiles to strike inside Russia for the first time.
The two-day summit is the first visit to Brazil by a UK prime minister for 12 years and it is thought that Sir Keir will focus on conversations that could help increase economic growth and security at home and abroad.
In a statement ahead of the summit, the prime minister said: “It is in the UK’s best interests to engage on the global stage – whether that’s building strong and fruitful partnerships with our closest allies or being frank with those whose values differ from our own.
“Close cooperation with the world’s leading economies is vital to secure investment into the UK and create the jobs needed to catalyse growth.
“As we mark 1,000 days since Putin’s illegal invasion of Ukraine, I will be doing all I can to bolster Ukraine as they continue to bravely defend their sovereignty.
“Under my leadership, the UK will be a responsible actor at a time of increasing volatility in the world, while ensuring our diplomacy delivers for people at home.”
The Foreign Office has been contacted for comment.