The foreign secretary must play a delicate game to reset our relationship with China

Editorial: James Cleverly must play to win, because the stark truth is that the West cannot have both China and Russia as enemies simultaneously

31 August 2023 (Dave Brown)

The foreign secretary, James Cleverly, is in China with two informal aims in mind, both vital to the British national interest.

First, he must prepare – and smooth – the geopolitical ground in preparation for Rishi Sunak’s scheduled meeting with Xi Jinping at the G20 meeting in India next month. Second, Mr Cleverly will need to try to peel China away from its “friendship without limits” (in reality a dangerous liaison) with Vladimir Putin, and persuade the Chinese leadership that an open-ended war in Ukraine is not only indefensible on the grounds of morality and international law, but contrary to China’s own national interests.

Formally, and entirely rightly, Mr Cleverly will also need, politely but firmly, to remind his interlocutors that human rights abuses in Hong Kong and towards the Uyghur Muslim people are unacceptable, as is aggression towards Taiwan and expansionism across the South China Sea.