- Tuesday, March 11, 2025
By: Shubham Ghosh
It seems China’s significance in the ongoing prime ministerial race in Britain continues to be long. A month after former finance minister Rishi Sunak called Beijing as London’s “largest threat”, The Times UK has reported that the Asian power will be classified as a “threat” to national security for the first time under the plans of Liz Truss, the foreign secretary who looks favourite to become the next British prime minister succeeding Boris Johnson who quit last month.
Truss has reportedly promised that she would reshape London’s foreign policy if she becomes the prime minister. The leader also has plans to reopen an integrated review that talks about what London’s priorities should be over the next decade in terms of diplomacy and defence.
The prime ministerial hopeful’s allies believe that if the plans are executed, China’s status will be similar to that of Russia which the review calls an “acute threat”.
Under the review, China was called a “systemic competitor” and a country the UK should deepen its trading relationship with.
However, it needs to be cautious of the risks it might pose to national security.
“Open trading economies like the UK will need to engage with China and remain open to Chinese trade and investment, but they must also protect themselves against practices that have an adverse effect on prosperity and security,” it said.
The change being initiated by Truss is seen as an attempt to curb the treasury’s efforts to better economic co-operation with Beijing, something that gained a boost during the tenure of Sunak.
Beijing’s crackdown on democracy in Hong Kong and the treatment of Uighur Muslims in its Xinjiang province are considered to be main factors that have led to this change.
“There will be no more economic partnerships. That was all meant to be suspended after Hong Kong,” a Truss ally was quoted as saying.
This change also marks a contrast to what it was under the government of David Cameron when Chinese president Xi Jinping was welcomed to the UK on an official visit.
A Truss campaign source told The Times, “Liz has toughened the UK’s stance on Beijing since becoming foreign secretary and would continue to take a hawkish stance as PM. She’s been active in calling out China’s economic coercion, working with G7 and other allies to mobilise investment into low and middle-income countries as a counter to China’s Belt and Road initiative.”
Truss also summoned the Chinese ambassador to Britain recently over Beijing’s aggression towards Taiwan after a visit by Nancy Pelosi, the speaker of the US House of Representatives, to the self-ruled democracy.
