China and Britain need to seek common ground while shelving differences and respect each other’s core interests, Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) told British Prime Minister Theresa May, following a dispute over Hong Kong.
China last month said a joint declaration with Britain over Hong Kong, which laid the blueprint over how the territory would be ruled after its return to China in 1997, was a historical document that no longer had any practical significance.
In response, Britain said the declaration remained in force and was a legally valid treaty to which it was committed to upholding.
Photo: EPA
China says no foreign country has the right to get involved with Hong Kong, as it is an internal affair for China, and has also reacted angrily to reports the British government gives to its Parliament about Hong Kong every six months.
Meeting on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Hamburg, Germany, on Friday, Xi told May that bilateral relations should be cultivated on the basis of “consolidating strategic mutual trust,” the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday.
“Both sides should uphold the principle of mutual respect and equality, and respect each other’s core interests and major concerns,” the ministry cited Xi as saying. “Both sides must seek common ground, while shelving differences.”
There was no direct mention of Hong Kong in the statement.
On Wednesday, British Minister of State for Asia and the Pacific Mark Field met Chinese Ambassador to Britain Liu Xiaoming (劉曉明) in London and made clear Britain’s commitment to the joint declaration, the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office said.
“This declaration, registered with the UN, remains in force until July 2047. As a consequence, the minister did not accept the Chinese government’s position that this was purely an historical document,” the office said.
While China and Britain have a history of disputes over human rights and the future of Hong Kong, ties have warmed in the past few years and economic links have grown in what both countries call a “golden age,” although Britain upset China last year by putting on hold a nuclear project it later approved.
China is high on Britain’s list of countries with which to sign a free-trade deal once Britain leaves the EU.
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