UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy is set to visit China on Friday for a two-day trip aimed at mending strained relations between the two nations following years of tensions over security issues

and alleged human rights violations.

During the visit, Lammy will meet with his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, in Beijing before heading to Shanghai to engage with British businesses operating in China, according to a statement from Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s office on Thursday.

"The focus is on establishing a consistent, long-term, and strategic approach to managing the UK's relationship with China," a government spokesperson said, noting that while Britain is prepared to challenge China where necessary, there is also room to explore areas of cooperation.

China's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning confirmed that the discussions would emphasize improving collaboration in various sectors.

This visit marks only the second by a British foreign minister to China in six years, following former Foreign Secretary James Cleverly’s trip last year. Prior to that, there had been a five-year gap between such visits.

The Labour government, which won a sweeping election victory in July, is seeking to stabilize relations with Beijing after years of disagreements over human rights, the situation in Hong Kong, and accusations of Chinese espionage. In August, Prime Minister Starmer told Chinese President Xi Jinping that the UK aimed to strengthen economic ties with China while maintaining an open dialogue on contentious issues.

Last month, China’s Vice Premier He Lifeng and British Finance Minister Rachel Reeves discussed cooperation to drive economic growth. Following these discussions, Beijing expressed a willingness to resume the UK-China Economic and Financial Dialogue, an annual forum for talks on trade and investment that had been paused since 2019.

Under the previous Conservative government, the UK had voiced concerns over China’s restrictions on civil liberties in Hong Kong, a former British colony until 1997, and its treatment of the Uighur population in Xinjiang. Additionally, both nations had exchanged accusations of espionage activities.

Despite these tensions, China remains the UK’s sixth-largest trading partner, accounting for 5% of Britain's total trade, according to official data. Photo by N509FZ, Wikimedia commons.