Chinese state-owned media outlet Global Times (GT) said Chinese President Xi Jinping’s scheduled meeting with British Prime Minister (PM) Rishi Sunak along the sidelines of the G20 summit in Bali this week was cancelled due to the United Kingdom’s (UK) “provocative behaviours” on the Taiwan issue, refuting earlier suggestions that it had to do with the missile strike near the Poland-Ukraine border.
Reuters and The Guardian had earlier reported that their meeting on Wednesday had been cancelled due to “time pressures” caused by the emergency talks between North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) members on the deadly missile strike on Poland the previous day that killed two people.
In fact, Sunak’s spokesperson reiterated these claims by saying that the meeting had been shelved due to “scheduling issues” after United States President Joe Biden convened an ‘impromptu’ meeting of NATO and G7 partners.
Although the Chinese foreign ministry has since said it has “no information to share” on the reason for the cancellation, Chinese experts cited by GT claimed that the cancellation was possibly “a way for China to express its strong dissatisfaction with Britain’s recent provocations on the Taiwan question.”
China’s state media said that although a multilateral platform such as the G20 would have been “perfect for enhancing communication between countries,” it appeared that the UK has “killed the possibility of having a dialogue with China.”
A reminder below of what was said during the leadership campaign.
— Luke de Pulford (@lukedepulford) November 15, 2022
We now face the prospect of our *number one* threat (according to PM) NOT being labelled a threat for UK policy purposes, but our number 2 and 3 threat (Iran? Russia?). Yep, they’re threats. Projects weakness. pic.twitter.com/fslYOKd2Sl
“As long as London doesn’t stop its provocative behaviors on issues involving Beijing’s bottom line, there is no hope for improving bilateral relations,” it declared.
Alluding to Sunak’s non-commital stance on providing arms to Taiwan, GT said that “China doesn’t want a hostile relationship with any country from the West, including the UK.”
It added that if Western nations “want to maintain their communication with China, they should know that the prerequisite is that they should never tread on China’s red line issue– the Taiwan question.”
GT that the shift in the UK’s attitude towards China, which it said is marked by a “short-sighted strategic vision and a rigid anti-China mindset,” is designed to “cater to the growing extreme conservatism within the country.”
In this respect, it warned that playing “Taiwan card” could deal a “fatal blow” to the UK, which “needs economic and trade relations with China to save itself.” Keeping this in mind it asked the UK whether it is “worth it” to “constantly narrow its diplomatic path to serve US strategic considerations.”
There it is. This is how the UK will be engaging with China under PM Rishi Sunak.
— Sam (@EditorBTB) November 17, 2022
"I believe that our approach to China is aligned entirely with that of the US, and indeed our other allies...of course China poses significant challenges...it is also right to engage in dialogue." pic.twitter.com/3JDpjFVu0R
Against this backdrop, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning stressed during her press briefing on Wednesday that China is “committed to promoting steady and sound development” of bilateral relations “on the basis of mutual respect, equality, and mutual benefit” and expressed hope that the UK will “meet China halfway.”
The escalation in UK-China ties comes after British Minister of State for Trade Policy Greg Hand’s visit to Taiwan last week, which GT described as “penny wise and pound foolish.”
Noting that China remains the UK’s third-largest trade partner, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian underscored Beijing “firmly opposes” any official interactions between Taiwan and countries with diplomatic ties with China, which he said are based on mutual adherence to the ‘one-China’ principle, which enshrines that Taiwan is an “inalienable part of China’s territory.”
In this regard, he urged the UK to “stop having any form of official interaction with Taiwan and stop sending wrong signals to ‘Taiwan independence’ separatist forces.” He further warned Taiwanese authorities that “any attempt to seek independence by colluding with external forces is doomed to fail.”
The ultimately-cancelled meeting between Xi and Sunak would have been the first bilateral meeting between the leaders of the two countries in five years.
Sunak, who took an aggressive stance against China during his election campaign, continued to voice his concerns regarding the Asian superpower even after returning from the G20.
He said in the House of Commons on Thursday that “China poses significant challenges to our values, interests, and indeed our economic security.”
Rishi Sunak has to start acting as a Conservative Prime Minister. Imminent tax rises, likely defence cuts, a hugely costly Net Zero strategy, a soft stance towards China - none of this advances a conservative agenda.
— Nile Gardiner (@NileGardiner) November 15, 2022
A Conservative Govt must lead with conservative policies.
“It’s right that we take the steps necessary to defend ourselves against them, but it is also wise to engage in dialogue where that makes a difference in solving some of the pressing global challenges that we all collectively face,” he remarked.
His comments came a day after the UK carried out a national security assessment and ordered Chinese-owned technology company Nexperia to sell at least 86% of Newport Wafer Fab, Britain’s biggest microchip factory.
Sunak defended the decision by saying that the country will “always be robust in defending [its] values and interests,” stressing, “and that starts with our national security.”
Sunak has referred to China as a “systemic competitor” and the UK’s “biggest state-based threat to our economic security.” He has also previously said China is the “largest threat to Britain and the world’s security,” denouncing its debt-trap diplomacy in developing countries, espionage activities, and predatory business acquisitions in the UK. He has also spoken out against China’s rights abuses in Hong Kong and Xinjiang, saying it “tortures, detains, and indoctrinates” its own citizens.
Likewise, Alicia Kearns, the newly-appointed chair of the United Kingdom’s (UK) Foreign Affairs Committee, recently described China as a “terrorist state.”
In addition, Minister of State for Security Ton Tugendhat announced this month that Sunak plans to ban all 30 Chinese-funded Confucius Institutes from British universities, saying they “pose a threat to civil liberties in many universities.”
These points were reiterated by MI5 chief Ken McCallum during the intelligence agency’s annual threat update this week, wherein he said “the activities of the Chinese Communist Party pose the most game-changing strategic challenge to the UK.”
“The Chinese authorities use all the means at their disposal to monitor—and where they deem necessary intimidate—the Chinese diaspora. This takes place all over the world, from coercing and forcibly repatriating Chinese nationals to harassment and assault,” he added.
In fact, Sunak has vowed to “expand” MI5’s “reach” to ensure greater protection to British businesses and universities against Chinese “industrial espionage” in order to safeguard intellectual property.
The UK’s relationship with China has also deteriorated over the last few years, particularly under the Johnson administration, under whom it took various steps to toughen its stance on China, including: introducing a new law to reduce Chinese acquisition of British businesses, opening the door to nearly three million people fleeing Hong Kong over the imposition of the national security law; banning Chinese telecommunications company Huawei from the UK’s 5G network; slashing aid to China by 95%; joining the AUKUS partnership with the United States (US) and Australia; and voicing concerns about human rights abuses in Hong Kong, Xinjiang, and Tibet.