The United Kingdom aims to improve partner relations with China, as it becomes more open to the world due to its exit from the EU, British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt said ahead of his visit to Beijing, which is due to start on Monday and will be his first foreign trip as head of the British Foreign Office since his appointment on July 9.
“The UK and China are both major powers with a global perspective. As the UK leaves the EU and becomes ever more outward looking, we are committed to deepening this vital partnership for the 21st century,” the British Foreign Office press service quotes Hunt.
Jeremy Hunt will meet his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Beijing on Monday to discuss strategic dialogue between the UK and China.
“The UK-China Strategic Dialogue is an important opportunity to intensify our cooperation on shared challenges in international affairs, ranging from global free trade to non-proliferation and environmental challenges, under the UK-China Global Partnership and ‘Golden Era’ for UK-China relations,” Hunt added.
After visiting Beijing, UK’s foreign secretary will head to Paris and Vienna in order to discuss the process of Britain leaving the EU, international threats, war in Syria and Iran nuclear deal, the British Foreign Office informs.
British Prime Minister Theresa May visited China in February. As a result of the visit, she secured commercial deals worth 9 bln pounds ($12 bln).