Keir Starmer held talks with the Chinese leader Xi Jinping this week and proclaimed Britain should have a more ‘sophisticated’ relationship with China. Pippa Crerar, who was with the prime minister on the trip, tells Kiran Stacey what all this means The Guardian
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China’s leaders pay tribute to Liao Xilong, late general described as ‘Communist warrior’
China’s leadership has paid tribute to Liao Xilong, praising the late general for his loyalty to the Communist Party and military service. Liao, 85, who was in charge of overhauling military logistics, died on January 23, state news agency Xinhua reported on Thursday, the day of his funeral. “[Liao was] a time-tested and loyal communist warrior, an outstanding military commander, and an exemplary leader in advancing the comprehensive modernisation of military logistics,” the report said. Advertisement Liao and Zhang were both combat veterans and rose to high military office but…
With China’s Xi, Britain’s Starmer hopes gift of Manchester United match ball scores points
Chinese President Xi Jinping received a unique gift from British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in Beijing on Thursday: the official match ball from Sunday’s fixture between Manchester United and Arsenal, according to media reports. While Starmer is an ardent Arsenal fan, Xi is reportedly a supporter of Manchester United. Advertisement Manchester United secured a 3-2 victory in a tightly contested match. By offering the gift involving two of the English Premier League’s most celebrated teams, Starmer’s gesture appeared meant to warm up Sino-British ties that have been fraught with complexity.…
Do Americans think China will overtake the US? The results of a survey are in
Releasing the results of a national poll earlier this month, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace said 47 per cent of the 1,500 adults surveyed agreed that China had already surpassed the United States or would do so within the next five years. A further 27 per cent said the shift would take longer, while only 26 per cent said China would never catch up. Advertisement The survey was carried out between November 24 and December 1. China’s biggest advantage, according to the respondents, was technological. Advertisement Asked where China…
Trump’s power politics is paving the way to a G2 world order with China
At Davos, US President Donald Trump declared he had “always had a very good relationship with President Xi” Jinping, calling the Chinese leader “an incredible man”, “highly respected by everybody”. Trump also praised TikTok’s decision to transfer parts of its US business to a consortium of US investors, thanking Xi on social media. This broadly friendly rhetoric is likely to be a signal of Washington’s keen interest in finalising a trade deal with the world’s second-largest economy. Trump’s effusive praise for Xi stood in stark contrast to his dismissive, if…
AstraZeneca unveils US$15 billion China investment plan as Starmer visits Beijing
British-Swedish pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca said on Thursday it plans to invest US$15 billion in China through 2030, signalling renewed momentum in UK-China commercial ties. The investment – the biggest deal announced so far during UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s trip to Beijing aimed at strengthening trade ties – will support expanded medicines manufacturing as well as research and development (R&D), the company said in a statement. “Unlocking opportunities for British businesses across the globe and delivering for working people back home is always the driving force behind my international engagements,”…
China executes 11 core members of Myanmar-based telecoms fraud ring
A Chinese court has executed 11 people, including several citizens of Myanmar, linked to a notorious telecoms fraud group based in the Southeast Asian country for crimes including fraud, drug trafficking and murder. The Wenzhou Intermediate People’s Court in eastern Zhejiang province carried out the executions of people who formed the core leadership of the Ming family crime syndicate and associated telecoms fraud groups, state broadcaster CCTV reported on Thursday. According to China’s Supreme People’s Court, which reviewed and approved the death sentences, the gang operated extensively in Myanmar’s Kokang…
With AI in the driving seat, China moves to rein in job displacement risks
After testing Tesla’s driver assistance system FSD earlier this month, Chinese economist Ren Zeping exclaimed that autonomous driving’s large-scale real-world implementation was progressing much faster than he thought. Though driverless taxis are so far only being tested in designated areas in Chinese cities, he prophesied that autonomous driving would soon become widespread. “Autonomous driving will erupt in the next couple of years. Large models enable a unified driving paradigm, letting tens of millions of vehicles reach or exceed ‘old pro’ driver levels – and become significantly safer,” Ren wrote in…
EU overtakes US as China’s top source of trade disputes, new data shows
The European Union has surpassed the United States as the economy with the most serious trade disputes with China, driven by conflicts over semiconductor materials, rare earth magnets and other strategic sectors, according to a Chinese trade body. A monthly index released on Wednesday by the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT), a semi-official Beijing-based organisation, found that in November 2025 – the last month tracked – the EU ranked as China’s top source of trade tensions among 20 economies. The bloc scored first on the trade…
Are China’s J-20A stealth fighters now updated with high-thrust WS-15 engines?
Beijing has released footage of flight tests of an upgraded J-20A stealth fighter, with signs that the jets have been equipped with long-awaited high-thrust WS-15 engines and better avionics. According to a social media post by state news agency Xinhua on Wednesday, these aircraft are new prototypes of the J-20A, an upgraded version of the original J-20 stealth fighter. Advertisement The footage showed at least three J-20As in a yellow zinc-chromate primer taxiing on a runway. In the Chinese aerospace industry, the coating means the aircraft is in the pre-delivery…