British Prime Minister Gordon Brown arrived in China yesterday, hailing Chinese investment and outlining an ambitious target to boost bilateral trade by 50 percent by 2010.
Brown opened an office of the London Stock Exchange in Beijing and also discussed the sensitive issues of Sudan and Myanmar, which have close ties to China, during a visit seen as vital to boosting ties between London and Beijing.
"I want Britain to be the first location for Chinese investment, in Europe and in the rest of the world," Brown told a joint press conference after he met Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao (
Brown also said he had invited China's new sovereign wealth fund, China Investment Corp, or CIC, to set up an office in London.
The CIC is charged with investing US$200 billion of China's US$1.5-trillion foreign exchange reserve, setting off some concerns abroad about China's growing financial clout.
"I recognize in some countries it's controversial but having talked to Premier Wen ... I think it's true that Britain will welcome the substantial investment from the Chinese in the years to come," Brown said.
Brown's two-day trip is the first by a European leader this year to China.
In a sign of the weight being given to the visit, he is being accompanied by 25 leading figures from the banking, financial services, pharmaceuticals, insurance, high-tech and energy sectors.
Brown and Wen oversaw signing ceremonies for eight agreements covering education, a sustainable cities project, climate change and agreements with British Petroleum involving the development of clean energy technology.
Both said they had set a target to raise two-way trade between China and Britain to US$60 billion by 2010, roughly 50 percent higher than the present level.
Later yesterday, Brown opened a representative office of the London Stock Exchange in the Chinese capital, following in the wake of similar offices established by the New York Stock Exchange and NASDAQ last month.
"I will be asking the Chinese government to consider removing the restrictions on Chinese companies able to raise capital overseas," Brown said at the launch.
He added the aim was to double the number of Chinese companies listing on the London Stock Exchange within the next five years.
Brown was due to meet Chinese President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤) later yesterday.
Wen and Brown also discussed Sudan's region of Darfur and Myanmar, both areas of diplomacy where China has previously been seen as dragging its feet.
On Darfur, Wen said he agreed with Brown that the dialogue between the UN, EU, and Sudanese government should continue to try to bring about peace in the region.
On Myanmar, the two leaders said they had agreed that UN envoy Ibrahim Gambari should return there "as soon as possible" to help with reform and reconciliation efforts.
NO-LIMITS PARTNERSHIP: ‘The bottom line’ is that if the US were to have a conflict with China or Russia it would likely open up a second front with the other, a US senator said Beijing and Moscow could cooperate in a conflict over Taiwan, the top US intelligence chief told the US Senate this week. “We see China and Russia, for the first time, exercising together in relation to Taiwan and recognizing that this is a place where China definitely wants Russia to be working with them, and we see no reason why they wouldn’t,” US Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines told a US Senate Committee on Armed Services hearing on Thursday. US Senator Mike Rounds asked Haines about such a potential scenario. He also asked US Defense Intelligence Agency Director Lieutenant General Jeffrey Kruse
INSPIRING: Taiwan has been a model in the Asia-Pacific region with its democratic transition, free and fair elections and open society, the vice president-elect said Taiwan can play a leadership role in the Asia-Pacific region, vice president-elect Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) told a forum in Taipei yesterday, highlighting the nation’s resilience in the face of geopolitical challenges. “Not only can Taiwan help, but Taiwan can lead ... not only can Taiwan play a leadership role, but Taiwan’s leadership is important to the world,” Hsiao told the annual forum hosted by the Center for Asia-Pacific Resilience and Innovation think tank. Hsiao thanked Taiwan’s international friends for their long-term support, citing the example of US President Joe Biden last month signing into law a bill to provide aid to Taiwan,
China’s intrusive and territorial claims in the Indo-Pacific region are “illegal, coercive, aggressive and deceptive,” new US Indo-Pacific Commander Admiral Samuel Paparo said on Friday, adding that he would continue working with allies and partners to keep the area free and open. Paparo made the remarks at a change-of-command ceremony at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam in Hawaii, where he took over the command from Admiral John Aquilino. “Our world faces a complex problem set in the troubling actions of the People’s Republic of China [PRC] and its rapid buildup of forces. We must be ready to answer the PRC’s increasingly intrusive and
STATE OF THE NATION: The legislature should invite the president to deliver an address every year, the TPP said, adding that Lai should also have to answer legislators’ questions The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday proposed inviting president-elect William Lai (賴清德) to make a historic first state of the nation address at the legislature following his inauguration on May 20. Lai is expected to face many domestic and international challenges, and should clarify his intended policies with the public’s representatives, KMT caucus secretary-general Hung Meng-kai (洪孟楷) said when making the proposal at a meeting of the legislature’s Procedure Committee. The committee voted to add the item to the agenda for Friday, along with another similar proposal put forward by the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP). The invitation is in line with Article 15-2