By Tom Fowdy
British China hawks are up in arms, the new government headed by Keir Starmer has taken several steps to reset the country's relationship with China. First and most significantly, the Prime Minister engaged in a telephone conversation with Xi Jinping last week, effectively pledging to talk. In addition to that, his premiership appears to have postponed or binned a number of anti-China measures the previous government had lined up, including placing Beijing in the "enhanced tier foreign agents registration scheme" and a "university free speech bill" targeted at China, amongst other things.
The right-wing newspapers in Britain that frequently share anti-China vitriol, namely the Telegraph and The Times, have repeatedly criticised these actions, as have the usual cohort of anti-China activists who are closely intertwined with, or are part of, the Conservative Party. These actions however do not come as a surprise as new Foreign Secretary David Lammy had published an article in Foreign Affairs at the beginning of his tenure calling for engagement with Beijing again. Although this cannot be a turn to the "golden era" heralded long ago, and cannot be completely independent of the US, it is a welcome turn of events.
Although the foreign policy of the Keir Starmer government was somewhat "NeoConservative" while in opposition, and he likewise worked to significantly purge the "left" of the party, especially on matters such as Israel-Gaza, upon taking office Labour has been pragmatic in practice, and has made a distinctive point of marking a split from the disastrous foreign policies of its predecessor, who's an entire approach to foreign affairs had become warped by the chauvinistic, nationalist and ideological aurora of Brexit, as well as its penchant for right-wing populism over substance.
In spite of all this, the past few weeks alone have taught me just how disastrous foreign affairs were being handled under the premierships of Rishi Sunak, Boris Johnson and with the influence of Liz Truss (as foreign secretary, not as PM thankfully as she did not last long enough to make a corrosive impact). Under their leadership, relations with China, a critical trading and economic partner of the United Kingdom, were actively thrown under the bus for cheap, short-term, political gain, while unhinged ultra-hawks such as Iain Duncan Smith had a disproportionate influence over the Conservative Party and sought to stroke rebellion on China-related issues, having transitioned the party's Euroscepticism into Xenophobia.
This internal party instability, and the subsequent weakness imposed on the government amidst its domestic economic and political mismanagement, alongside a myriad of scandals, made taking shots at China preferable as a distraction, with engagement breaking down entirely. This included the repeated weaponization of "China influence" and "spy" controversies to whip up public hysteria and tactfully distract from unflattering news, weaponizing agencies such as MI5 and the police accordingly. This "yellow peril" political theatre also significantly damaged relations, even amidst all the other upheavals the US was inflicting in the background.
Likewise, anti-China politics was motivated by the government making the disastrous strategic choice of pursuing (unsuccessfully) an ideologically motivated trade agreement with the United States which made them kowtow to Washington's goals all the more. Not only did the US across the span of four years show zero interest in such a deal owing to the protectionist consensus in Washington, but it simply made anti-China demands to the UK in exchange for nothing. The Conservative government subsequently attempted to secure pitiful "agreements" with individual US states to try and present a win. It was bootlicking at the absolute worst. The whole mantra of Brexit placed ideology and Anglosphere exceptionalism at the expense of pragmatic and tangible gains, all as the country crumbled on all fronts.
Thankfully, the Keir Starmer government is reversing this tainted legacy and is restoring a common-sense approach to diplomacy that more readily balances Britain's fundamental national interests. While this favors re-engaging with the European Union, it also subsequently seeks to stabilize and have a constructive relationship with China. There will of course remain many areas of disagreement, but thankfully in contrast with the preceding administrations, this will not descend into mass yellow peril, race-baiting and cheap political opportunism. Things will be done sensibly. The Keir Starmer government has a huge majority in Parliament, is stable and therefore able to pursue its agenda comfortably without any kind of disruption. This alone precludes stability in foreign relations, marking a huge contrast with the chaotic, divided, and un-scrumptious legacy of a Conservative government.
The author is a well-seasoned writer and analyst with a large portfolio related to China topics, especially in the field of politics, international relations and more. He graduated with an Msc. in Chinese Studies from Oxford University in 2018.
The views do not necessarily reflect those of DotDotNews.
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