(MENAFN) According to the British prime minister, the era of burgeoning trade with China that was driven by shared economic interests has come to an end. Beijing was referred to as a rival by Rishi Sunak, who also pledged to refrain from using a "simplistic" confrontational strategy.
On Monday, Sunak gave a speech at the Lord Mayor's Banquet in London, “let’s be clear, the so-called ‘golden era’ is over, along with the naive idea that trade would lead to social and political reform.”
His use of the phrase appeared to be a reference to comments made in 2015 by then-chancellor George Osborne, who echoed the Chinese ambassador's description of the current state of British-Sino relations as a "golden era."
The prime minister emphasized that, in dealing with what he called a "systemic challenge to our values and interests," reassessing relationships does not mean that Britain is going to adopt "simplistic Cold War rhetoric." He continued by charging that the Chinese government was taking an increasingly authoritarian stance.
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