PM praised for not pressuring Xi over his ties with Putin on a trip seen as business ‘taking precedence over politics’
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Keir Starmer’s visit to Beijing has been cautiously welcomed by Chinese state media as an act of economic pragmatism by a beleaguered British prime minister.
The presence of 50 business and cultural leaders with Starmer, who is the first British prime minister to visit China in eight years, was taken as a sign that the UK was prioritising its ailing economy over political considerations.
The reported refusal of Starmer to confirm that he would be seen to pressure President Xi Jinping over his relationship with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, was seized upon by the state-owned Guancha news website.
