British Prime Minister Keir Starmer (c-L) and Chinese Premier Li Qiang (C-R) pose with their business delegations at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on January 29, 2026. CARL COURT / AFP
Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer hailed "really good progress" on issues including visa-free travel and tariffs during talks with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Beijing on Thursday.
Starmer's visit to China is the first by a British premier since 2018 and follows a slew of Western leaders seeking a rapprochement with Beijing recently, pivoting from an increasingly unpredictable United States.
Xi and Starmer met at the opulent Great Hall of the People and both stressed the need for closer relations in order to face geopolitical headwinds.
Starmer told Xi that China is a "vital player on the global stage" and that they needed to "build a more sophisticated relationship where we identify opportunities to collaborate."
