By He Yin, People’s Daily
On Jan. 29, Chinese President Xi Jinping met in Beijing with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who was on an official visit to China. This marked the first visit to China by a British prime minister in eight years and was widely seen by the international community as an important step by the UK to seek a new chapter in relations with China.
As the world today is undergoing both changes and turbulence, China and the UK, as permanent members of the UN Security Council and major economies, should enhance dialogue and cooperation in order to maintain world peace and stability, while promoting the economy and people’s livelihoods of both countries.
Over the past year and more, under the strategic guidance of the two countries’ leaders, China-UK relations have steadily stabilized and improved. At the meeting, Xi outlined the direction for further advancing bilateral ties, from enhancing exchanges to jointly shouldering global responsibilities, and emphasized the need to translate the promising potential of cooperation into remarkable accomplishments.
Starmer noted that it is vital for the UK and China to build a long-term and consistent comprehensive strategic partnership with mutual respect and trust, especially in a volatile and fragile world.
History and reality show that as long as both sides adopt a broad historical perspective, rise above differences, and respect each other, China-UK relations and cooperation can indeed open up new horizons, bringing benefits to the peoples of both countries and to the world as a whole.
Since the beginning of the year, leaders from several countries, including Ireland, Canada, Finland, and the UK, have visited China in succession. International media have described this as a wave of “diplomatic engagement” centered on China.
With the global situation growing ever more unsettled and the world facing the risk of sliding toward a “ruleless” era, various parties are once again “rediscovering” China and placing greater emphasis on dialogue and cooperation to jointly address global challenges.
This should not be simply interpreted as an “impulsive response” to changes in the international environment. Rather, it underscores the consistent resolve, sense of responsibility, and confidence that China has demonstrated as a responsible major country amid profound global transformations.
China’s role as a “source of momentum” for mutually beneficial cooperation has become more prominent. During his visit to China, Starmer led a delegation of more than 60 important representatives from Britain’s business and cultural sectors, which demonstrated the strong desire across British society to tap into opportunities in China.
According to Sky News, China is already the UK’s third-largest trading partner, supporting 370,000 jobs across the country. The China-Britain Business Council recently stated that, for British companies, China is key to enhancing their global competitiveness.
Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo likewise noted that Finnish companies have a strong interest in cooperation with China, adding that his visit to China was intended to open the door to opportunities for Finnish businesses.
At a time when de-globalization and trade protectionism are on the rise, opportunities for cooperation have become a scarce resource.
As China embarks on its 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-2030), it is steering high-quality development through sound scientific planning, steadfastly expanding high-standard opening up, and offering the world a “list of opportunities,” welcoming enterprises from all countries to dive into the vast ocean of China’s market.
This not only helps all parties enhance the resilience of development, but also anchors the right course toward building an open world economy amid the headwinds of the times.
China’s role as a stabilizing force within the international order has also grown more pronounced. In recent years, the surge in unilateralism, protectionism, and power politics has dealt severe blows to the established international system. International law is only effective when universally respected, with major powers leading by example; otherwise, the world risks reverting to a state where might makes right.
This is precisely the resolve and responsibility that the international community sees in China today. China champions equality, the rule of law, cooperation, and good faith, and firmly upholds the international system with the UN at its core and the international order underpinned by international law. It practices genuine multilateralism and works to build a more just and equitable global governance system, contributing to an equal and orderly multipolar world and a universally beneficial and inclusive economic globalization.
In its interactions with other countries, China does not demand that other countries choose sides. Even when bilateral relations encounter difficulties, China consistently advocates seeking common ground while shelving differences and focusing on cooperation, striving for harmony in diversity and shared progress.
The growing recognition of China’s ideas and role by the international community further shows that what a turbulent world truly needs is not the logic of power or narrow calculations of interest, but a firm commitment to standing on the right side of history and on the side of human progress.
No matter how the international situation may change, China remains committed to the path of peaceful development and values the primacy of harmony and harmony within diversity. Partnering with China means embracing opportunities, and together contributing positive energy for peace and development to the world.
‘Diplomatic surge’ that highlights China’s resolve, responsibility
