UK's Cameron visits China seeking trade, influence
by David Stringer

The Associated Press    Translate This Article
8 November 2010

LONDON (AP) - British Prime Minister David Cameron was leading his country's largest ever delegation to China on Monday, hoping to win trade and woo a powerful potential ally as London seeks to cultivate ties beyond Washington and Europe.

Cameron, accompanied by four Cabinet ministers and about 50 business leaders, will arrive Tuesday for two days of talks in Beijing—his second major trip to court an emerging economy following a high-profile visit to India in July.

Britain's new government has made trade with developing economies its key foreign policy priority, hoping to spur the country's sluggish growth by boosting exports.

'Our message is simple,' Cameron said in a statement. 'Britain is now open for business, has a very business-friendly government, and wants to have a much, much stronger relationship with China.'

He said the tour would 'mark another step to making Britain the successful, open, trading and pro-business country that I want it to be.'

Last year, China was Britain's third-largest source of imports and ninth-largest export market.

Cameron is being joined by executives from Royal Dutch Shell PLC, Tesco PLC, Barclays bank and Diageo PLC, among others. Treasury chief George Osborne, Business Secretary Vince Cable, Energy and Climate Change Secretary Chris Huhne and Education Secretary Michael Gove are also on the trip.

Cameron will meet with Chinese President Hu Jintao and holds talks Tuesday in Beijing with Premier Wen Jiabao. In a speech Wednesday, the British leader will insist that his country still has clout on the world stage.

'He will remind China that Britain matters, and that Britain is a strong trading partner for China,' said a Cameron spokesman, on customary condition of anonymity in line with policy.

Cable, who is already in China for trade talks, said British firms had agreed a number of multimillion pound (dollar) deals ahead of the delegation's arrival.

He said London-based architects Benoy had won three contracts worth about 4 million pounds ($6.5 million). In deals to help China reduce greenhouse gas emissions, NorthgateArinso, a British human resources firm, will measure the carbon footprint of the eastern city of Wuxi, while British-based design and engineering firm Arup will study emissions in Beijing. ...

Cameron's office confirmed that he will challenge China on its human rights record during his visit, but declined to elaborate.

'I don't think we will approach it by lecturing them, but they know this is part of the wider political and economic framework in which we operate,' Cable said.

Cameron's visit is the first by a U.K. leader since China executed 53-year-old British man, Akmal Shaikh, for drug smuggling, in December.

George Young, the leader of the House of Commons, has said Cameron will discuss the case of jailed Chinese human rights activist Liu Xiaobo, who won the Nobel Peace Prize last month.

On previous visits overseas, Cameron has often been outspoken.

During talks in Turkey in July, he sharply criticized Israel's raid on a Gaza-bound flotilla and said the Palestinian territory 'cannot and must not be allowed to remain a prison camp.' In India that same month, he offended Pakistan by saying it must not be allowed 'to promote the export of terror.'

During Britain's election campaign, Cameron suggested that Britain must retain nuclear weapons in part because of doubts about China's relations with other nations.

Copyright © 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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