The British Foreign Office has blocked former Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen's plans to visit China next month because it could jeopardize her visit to China next month, according to a report.
Tsai Ing-wen plans to step down as president of the Republic of China and Taiwan in May of this year and embark on a new policy. tours of european countries Scheduled in the coming weeks, the itinerary will not include the UK as expected. Report by guardian It claims plans to welcome former President Tsai were blocked by the UK's Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) because of concerns about how the Chinese Communist Party would react.
One person said to have been involved in the scheme told the newspaper: “We received a memo from the FCDO through the UK representative to Taiwan…it said: “As the Foreign Secretary is about to make an announcement, could you please postpone it for a while?'' a “goodwill visit'' to China. ” would definitely cause anxiety in China. ”
Britain's new foreign secretary, David Lammy, is reportedly scheduled to visit China next week, with Bloomberg saying the visit is aimed at “improving relations” with the industrial powerhouse. Britain's relationship with China enjoyed what was euphemistically called a “golden age” over the past decade under the fervently China-loving David Cameron, but the subsequent Conservative government has been overly loyal to China. He was clearly skeptical about the wisdom of opening up.
Former President Tsai's visit, organized by the UK-Taiwan All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG), was scheduled to take place this month. guardian state. They cite multiple (but anonymous) sources who say the government has used its powers to deny support for the visit, making it unfeasible.
Of course, Britain has a long history of deferring to China on Taiwan issues, ceasing to formally recognize Taiwan as a country in the 1950s and withdrawing its diplomatic services in the 1970s. Even if the UK government doesn't want to engage with Taiwan as a country, it still does. large amount of trade Along with that, it is worth billions of pounds a year.
This flattery for Beijing to build bridges with China comes just months after China was accused of a major hack of British government Ministry of Defense computers, putting the details of hundreds of thousands of military personnel at risk. I was disappointed.
China has also been accused of carrying out large-scale operations in British politics to influence MPs, as well as nurturing a whole new generation of British politicians from their earliest days as candidates. has been criticized. The most high-profile scandal related to these operations involved a Labor MP who was brought before the security services in 2022, after one of his close friends and benefactors, a Chinese lawyer, posed a security threat. I was told that it has been declared that
