Starmer brushes off Trump’s warning it’s ‘very dangerous’ for UK to do business with China
Sir Keir Starmer ignored Donald Trump’s warning that doing business with China would be “very dangerous” as the Prime Minister continued his efforts to strengthen economic ties during his controversial visit to the country.
The Prime Minister met Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on Thursday as he sought to create a “more sophisticated” trade relationship between the UK and China.
But hours after the landmark meeting, US president Donald Trump expressed disapproval of Britain’s efforts to do business with China, despite the US president planning his own visit to the country in April.
Answering reporters’ questions about the visit earlier Friday, Trump said: “It’s very dangerous for them to do this, and I think it’s even more dangerous for Canada to do business with China.”
He added that Canada had performed “badly” and said “you can’t look to China as the answer.”
But speaking to broadcasters in Shanghai, Sir Keir appeared unimpressed by the US president’s warning, telling Sky News: “I saw President Trump’s comments. To be fair, he was probably talking more about Canada than the UK.”
Adding that the United States and Britain remain “very close allies,” Trump said his visit to China had been discussed with Mr. Trump’s team in advance, pointing to the president’s upcoming visit to the country in April.
Sir Keir and President Xi agreed to halve Scotch whiskey tariffs to 5 per cent and visa-free travel to China for British tourists and businesses. Following his meeting with Sir Keir, President Xi also agreed to lift China’s sanctions, including a travel ban, on British MPs and their colleagues.
Mr Trump threatened Canada with a 100 per cent tariff on exports in early January after Canadian prime minister Mark Carney forged closer economic ties during a visit to China.
British officials insisted the US was aware of Sir Keir’s trip and his goals in advance, and pointed to Mr Trump’s visit to China, which is expected to take place in April.
Mr Trump’s comments were rebuked on Friday by Business Secretary Sir Chris Bryant, who said his remarks about Britain’s trade prospects were “wrong”.
Asked by BBC Breakfast In case the US President was mistaken in his words, Trade Secretary Sir Chris Bryant said: “Yes, he is wrong, and I say that precisely because, on top of everything else, he also said in his own statement that he is friends with President Xi, and it is my understanding that President Trump himself will go to China in April.”
He added that it would be “absolutely insane” for the UK not to engage with China.
“I agree…of course you have to go into your relationship with China with your eyes open,” he told Sky News.
“You have to challenge China on issues where we disagree with them, but you also have to face the fact that China is a great power in the world.
“It’s the world’s second-largest economy and our fourth-largest export market. So it would be absolutely crazy for the UK not to cooperate with China.”
The US president’s comments came ahead of Sir Keir’s arrival in Shanghai, a major financial centre, for the next leg of his trip.
His visit to China’s largest city and global financial hub will mark the end of a controversial trip in which the prime minister’s political opponents accused him of “caving in” to Mr Xi.
In his meeting with Mr Xi, Sir Keir highlighted the financial benefits of improving relations with China, a key part of global supply chains.
The government is trying to balance relations between China and the United States, following the US president’s demands to reduce dependence on Chinese trade.
Ahead of his trip, Sir Keir told Bloomberg he would not be choosing between Washington and Beijing: “I’m often asked to choose between countries. I don’t do that,” he said.
“We have very close relations with the United States, of course we want to, and we will continue this work as well as security and defense.
“Equally, it wouldn’t make sense to ignore China and bury your head in the sand when it is the world’s second largest economy and has business opportunities.”
No. 10 also left the door open to a future visit to the UK by Mr Xi, whose last official visit to the UK was in October 2015.
The Prime Minister’s visit to China is the first by a UK prime minister since 2018. Sir Keir has faced calls to increase the imprisonment of Hong Kong pro-democracy campaigner Jimmy Lai and China’s leaders’ treatment of the Uyghur minority.
He said they had a “respectful discussion” on these issues and that was “part of the reason why he joined.”
Downing Street declined to elaborate on discussions on controversial issues including Mr Lai, the Uyghur community, MPs endorsed by China and Beijing’s purchase of Russian oil hit by Western sanctions to disrupt the war effort in Ukraine.
His official spokesman did not say whether Sir Keir had told the Chinese president that Mr Lai should be released, but said the government’s position on his immediate release had not changed.
The 78-year-old British national was kept in isolation for five years for treatment, which amounted to “torture” under Hong Kong’s new national security law, according to Mr. Lai’s son.
