British leader’s trip to China is a balancing act between trade, national security and Trump

Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer is welcomed upon his arrival at an airport in Beijing, China, Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung, Pool)

BEIJING — U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Wednesday that his country doesn’t have to choose between relations with the United States and China as he started a four-day trip to China aimed at repairing ties and expanding opportunities for British companies in the world’s second-largest economy.

The British leader arrived in the capital, Beijing, in the late afternoon. Earlier, he told reporters on his plane that he would balance engagement with China with national security concerns.

“I’m a pragmatist, a British pragmatist applying common sense,” he said.

He is the first U.K. prime minister to visit Beijing since Theresa May in 2018. The relationship deteriorated in the intervening years over growing concern about Chinese espionage, Beijing’s support for Russia in the Ukraine war and its crackdown on civil liberties in Hong Kong, the former British colony.

Those issues remain, but both sides are emphasizing that they should “seek common ground while managing differences,” as Zheng Zeguang, China’s Ambassador to the U.K., wrote in a commentary for The Times of London this week.

The U.K. sees opportunity in selling services to China

Starmer, whose center-left Labour Party government has struggled to deliver the economic growth it promised, is bringing a delegation of more than 50 British business leaders including executives from British Airways, HSBC bank and Jaguar Land Rover. His agenda includes Shanghai, the nation’s financial capital and a major port, as well as meetings with Xi Jinping and other Chinese leaders in Beijing.

Starmer told members of the U.K. business and culture delegation that they were “making history.”

“It’s in our national interest to engage with China,” he said, adding that the relationship brought “huge opportunities.”

“Of course, we will have to manage our differences,” he added.

China had a huge trade surplus with the U.K. in 2025, exporting $85.1 billion in goods while importing $18.6 billion worth, according to Chinese statistics. But the U.K. had a trade surplus in services.

Wang Yiwei, a European affairs expert at Renmin University of China, said that Britain’s strengths in finance, consulting and other services dovetail well with a growing appetite in China for services such as health and elderly care. “It’s a huge market,” he said.

The Trump factor weighs on both countries

For many governments, the disruption to global trade under U.S. President Donald Trump has made expanding trade and investment even more imperative.

Both Britain and China have been buffeted by U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs and are seeking to diversify their overseas markets and the supply chains for their industries. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney made a trip to China earlier this month with the same goals in mind.

The approach is not without risks. Trump has threatened to put a 100% tariff on Canada if it reaches a trade deal with China, prompting a swift response from Carney. Canada and China have a preliminary agreement to cut tariffs on electric vehicles and farm goods, but Canada has no intention of pursuing a free trade deal with Beijing, the Canadian leader said.

For many countries, the challenge is finding the right balance in an increasingly uncertain world. Even China, seen by many as a challenger to U.S. dominance in the 21st century, cannot oppose America, Wang said, noting Trump’s planned visit in April.

“We are not against but we criticize,” he said.

Starmer is facing opposition from Trump over the U.K.’s agreement to hand over the Chagos Islands in the Indian Ocean to Mauritius. The British government says the move will secure the future of a key U.K.-U.S. military base against legal challenge, but critics argue it opens the door to Chinese influence.

Last week Trump spoke out against the deal, calling it an “act of great stupidity,” although his administration welcomed it when it was agreed in May.

On his way to Beijing, Starmer insisted the Trump administration’s intelligence agencies had reviewed the deal in detail and “concluded that it was a deal they wanted to support, did support and did so in very clear terms.”

Starmer’s office said Wednesday it “will continue to engage with the U.S.” to “allay any concerns” about the Chagos deal.

Spying and Hong Kong complicate the relationship

Concern about Chinese spying and surveillance has risen sharply in many countries in recent years, complicating trade and overall relations. The U.K. has barred Chinese investment in sensitive telecoms infrastructure and squeezed China out of investment in new nuclear power plants, souring ties.

Starmer’s government has said it will protect national security while keeping up diplomatic dialogue and economic cooperation with the Asian superpower. The U.K. recently approved plans for a huge Chinese Embassy in London, removing a sticking point in relations but also overriding claims by critics that the “mega-embassy” would make it easier for China to conduct espionage and intimidate dissidents.

While most Western leaders come under pressure to raise human rights issues with China, they are a particular flashpoint for the U.K. because of its historical links to Hong Kong, a British colony until 1997.

Starmer’s visit comes less than two months after a Hong Kong court convicted Jimmy Lai, a former newspaper publisher and a British citizen, under a national security law that Beijing imposed on the territory after massive pro-democracy protests in 2019.

Chris Patten, the British governor of Hong Kong from 1992 to 1997, said Starmer should be firm in raising disagreements over Lai’s imprisonment and other human rights issues.

___

Ken Moritsugu and Jill Lawless, The Associated Press

Lawless reported from London.