British Prime Minister Keir Starmer to visit China from January 28 to 31

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer will make an official visit to China from January 28 to 31 at the invitation of Chinese Premier Li Qiang, marking the first visit by a British prime minister in eight years, China’s Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday. During the trip, Starmer will meet President Xi Jinping, hold talks with Premier Li, and meet China’s top legislator Zhao Leji, with discussions expected to cover bilateral relations and issues of mutual concern; he will also visit Shanghai. The visit follows recent high-level exchanges that Chinese officials say have helped put China–UK relations back on a path of improvement, and comes as the UK Labour government signals interest in building a stable, long-term strategic relationship with China. Separately, China’s Ministry of Commerce said China and Britain remain important economic and trade partners, with goods trade reaching $103.7 billion in 2025 and services trade expected to exceed $30 billion. Starmer is expected to be accompanied by representatives from more than 50 major British companies, and both sides plan to sign cooperation documents on trade and investment, expand collaboration in areas such as green energy, healthcare, creative industries and advanced manufacturing, and jointly support free trade and the multilateral trading system.

Credit : CGTN