UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy to visit China

LONDON — Britain’s new foreign secretary will visit China on Friday for his first official visit since Labour came to power.

David Lammy will head to Beijing on Oct. 18 and 19 for talks with his counterparts as the U.K. reassesses its relationship with the Chinese government.

In a statement by China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, spokesperson Mao Ning said: “At the invitation of Member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi, David Lammy, Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs of the UK, will pay an official visit to China from October 18 to 19.”

The trip comes after U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer warned Wednesday that China’s military activities in the Taiwan Strait were “not conducive to peace and stability,” and pledged the U.K. government would “challenge” Beijing on areas of disagreement — while cooperating on matters of shared interest.

Lammy has been urged by a group of U.K. MPs to “engage with China as it really is under the leadership of Xi Jinping” and raise human rights abuses, according to a letter seen by the Guardian. A number of British parliamentarians who previously voiced criticism of the Chinese Communist Party have been sanctioned by Beijing.

Former Tory Cabinet Minister James Cleverly was the last U.K. foreign secretary to visit China in Aug. 2023, the first such visit in more than five years.

Cleverly’s successor David Cameron adopted a tougher approach towards China, with the then-Tory government accused Beijing-sponsored actors of carrying out cyberattacks on British democracy. It marked a clear contrast from the so-called “golden era” of U.K.-China relations while Cameron was prime minister between 2010 and 2016.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office was approached for comment.