Britain wants to ‘destabilise’ Hong Kong, says Beijing

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Observing China is the essential newsletter to understand the UK-PRC relationship, explained in the context of global developments.

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Being a China watcher in the United Kingdom (UK) today is particularly fascinating. Analysing the media discourse, you gather rather quickly that bilateral relations between Britain and the People’s Republic of China (PRC), and how they should be, is something of a battleground. His Majesty’s (HM) Government stated that the PRC amounts to the UK’s ‘most complex bilateral relationship’, because Beijing both poses a threat to Britain’s democracy but also a lucrative economic opportunity, all while being an increasingly unignorable diplomatic player on the world stage.

What often feels bizarre but is somewhat understandable is that HM Government, under the leadership of Sir Keir Starmer, Prime Minister, often does not publish the interactions of its officials with their Chinese counterparts, knowing that it will likely draw ire from those who vouch for cooler ties with Beijing. Whitehall is also keen to allay vociferous criticism, which also sounds from across the Atlantic. This is why, as a China analyst, I often find out about meetings of British and Chinese officials from PRC state media.

The case of Jimmy Lai, the Hong Kong media tycoon convicted of national security offences by Beijing, will add further complications to the bilateral relationship, as Lai is a British citizen. Calls for his release have received bipartisan support in the UK since his arrest in 2020. Sir Keir is due to visit the PRC next month, and 32 organisations around the world, including the Committee to Protect Journalists, have called for him to request Lai’s release while in Beijing.

Whitehall’s statements on Jimmy Lai have already stoked Beijing’s furore. Meanwhile, significant bilateral cooperation continues, in ways which signal a mutually held long-term vision. As an example, earlier this month, Maritime London, the UK’s industry-led body for maritime professional services, held the inaugural

UK-China Shipping Forum in Shanghai as part of Pudong International Shipping

Week 2025. Shipping is a key sector for both countries, and features heavily in the blueprint for the PRC’s latest Five-Year Plan.

Welcome back to Observing China.