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Cameron backs free trade Chinese vice premier meets British health secretary China, UK to boost ties as Cameron voices stance on Tibet Chinese President Xi meets with David Cameron

China, Britain to enhance high-tech, economic ties China and Britain have agreed to enhance cooperation in areas including high-speed railway, nuclear power and finance, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said on Monday. Chinese premier meets Britain's Cameron Premier Li Keqiang held talks with British Prime Minister David Cameron in Beijing on Monday, the first meeting of the two heads of government since China's new leaders took office in March. British PM arrives in Beijing for visit British Prime Minister David Cameron on Monday morning arrived in Beijing for a three-day official visit to China. David Cameron: I'm backing China Britain will act as China's strongest advocate in the west, British prime minister, David Cameron, declared last night as he flew into Beijing pledging to lead a "dialogue of mutual respect and understanding". Cameron visits China with 100-strong trade delegation to boost ties British Prime Minister David Cameron arrives in China Monday at the head of a 100-strong trade delegation.

Agenda

Time	Location	Counterpart
Dec. 2 to 4	Beijing, Shanghai, Hangzhou, Chengdu	Xi Jinping, Li Keqiang

Focus on

●building a long-term relationship between Britain and China based on mutual understanding and respect for mutual benefit

●partnership - an open Britain is the ideal partner for an opening China

●tackling 21st century challenges, from sustainable urbanisation to educating the next generation to meeting the elderly’s healthcare needs

Agenda

●hold meetings with President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang

●meet with Chinese investors and showcase British businesses

●engage with Chinese students and civil society representatives

Source: Prime Minister's Office, 10 Downing Street

Highlights

●Ties between Beijing and London cooled after Cameron persisted in meeting the Dalai Lama in May 2012, a move that interfered with China's internal affairs.  China voices strong indignation and objection to UK Dalai Lama meeting China has voiced strong indignation and objection to British Prime Minister David Cameron and Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg's meeting with the Dalai Lama and has lodged representation to Britain. The Foreign Ministry says the British move has seriously interfered in China's internal affairs. Britain repects China's sovereignty over Tibet: PM Britain does not support Tibetan independence and respects China's sovereignty, Prime Minister David Cameron told members of parliament on May 8.

Cameron says hello on Weibo ahead of China visit British Prime Minister David Cameron has opened an account on Sina Weibo, China's twitter-like microblog website, to say hello ahead of his visit to China. Comments: @张建通V：I'm so envious that you already got so many followers in such a short time. @我的精神病谁也治不好：Tuhao, let's be friends! @媒体人谭军：Welcome to China! I heard that you will come to Chengdu for some hot pot. People in Chengdu are guessing which restaurant you’ll go? Will you release the name? @杰克斯派瑞特：Taxes in the UK are too high, could you please lower them a little bit?

Quotes

"Britain is uniquely placed to make the case for deepening the European Union’s trade and investment relationship with China. Building on the recent launch of EU-China negotiations on investment, and on China’s continued commitment to economic reform, I now want to set a new long-term goal of an ambitious and comprehensive EU-China Free Trade Agreement. And as I have on the EU-US deal, so I will put my full political weight behind such a deal which could be worth tens of billions of dollars every year."
"I hope that by advancing and extending our bilateral trade, by working together on the global issues that affect us all, and by maintaining an honest and open dialogue, my visit to China can plant the seeds of a long-term relationship which will benefit China, Britain and the world for generations to come."

Source: Prime Minister's Office, 10 Downing Street

Commentary

Global Times: China won’t fall for Cameron’s ‘sincerity’
The Cameron administration should acknowledge that the UK is not a big power in the eyes of the Chinese. It is just an old European country apt for travel and study. This has gradually become the habitual thought of the Chinese people.

China has believed in "diplomacy is no small matter," while after years of ups and downs, we have acquired the strategic confidence that "diplomacy is no big matter." China will act accordingly given how it is treated.

Xinhua: Looking beyond differences for practical China-Britain cooperation
It has to be noted there is no fundamental conflicting interests between China and Britain, while it is not unusual for the two countries to hold different views on certain issues due to their divergence in culture and social systems.

When differences emerge, communication is better than confrontation, and engaging is more effective than enraging.

Experts welcome deepening China-Britain financial cooperation
Geoffrey Yu, executive director and foreign exchange strategist at UBS Limited, told Xinhua: "The UK is indeed pitching to become the global hub for RMB trading, though I question whether they have thought the process through. The UK has been seen as behind the curve in establishing a close economic relationship with China, and I get the feeling that in trying to get to the front of the queue the government is giving away a bit too much. There are very deep structural reasons as to why the UK lags Germany and other countries in a trading relationship, but they are not being addressed."

BBC: Cameron's China dividend hope
His promise now to "respect" and "understand" China is the price he has had to pay to thaw what was a diplomatic deep freeze.

He is hoping for a significant economic dividend.

The Independent: The money shot: David Cameron’s Chinese entourage
Mr Cameron, who is due to arrive in Beijing this morning, knows that his delegation is very much coming as the supplicant to the Chinese Government. He had wanted to visit last year – but miscalculated the intense Chinese anger at a meeting he had held with the Dalai Lama in London. Since then British diplomats have been mending fences and going on a charm offensive.

The Financial Times: Cameron defends backing of China-EU trade deal
EU policy makers want a free trade deal with China in the long term. But there are deep misgivings in some EU countries about the impact of cheap Chinese imports and scepticism about whether Beijing would be willing to open its markets.

Karel De Gucht, the EU trade commissioner, has made clear that there are numerous obstacles to such a trade pact, given the stark differences between the EU and Chinese economies, including subsidies, export credits and soft loans for companies. “I don’t believe that any time soon negotiations for a [China-EU] free-trade agreement make a lot of sense, unless all of a sudden the Chinese would dramatically change,” he said in October.

The Wall Street Journal: Cameron Seeks Thaw in China Relations
"I suspect there will be some big announcement about new investment in the UK that will create the fireworks that will allow us to forget the last 18 months ever happened," said Kerry Brown, a former British diplomat who now runs the China Studies Center at the University of Sydney. Mr. Brown said that Chinese investment in the UK isn't as politically fraught as it is in the US, where Chinese companies like telecom-equipment producer Huawei have been essentially barred from doing business out of security concerns. "We don't care whether the cat is white or black as long as it creates jobs," he said.

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