How Chinese and Britons are viewing Xi’s UK visit

World Today

Chinese President Xi Jinping landed in London on Monday evening at the start of a state visit, the first by a Chinese leader to the United Kingdom since 2005.

Before the trip, Xi answered questions from Reuters through written responses about the development of the Chinese economy and commercial ties between the two countries.

“They (Xi’s answers) were quite clear and to-the-point,” said Guy Faulconbridge, Chief of Reuters’ U.K. Bureau, reflecting on the interview.

In the “Chinese economy, he admitted, there were problems, and that the Chinese authorities and Chinese government were trying to deal with those problems,” Faulconbridge added.

The interview also offered the international media and the people of Britain insight into how the Chinese leader views ties between the two nations.

China invests more in the U.K. than any other country in the European Union. Britain is today China’s second-largest trade partner in the EU.

Britain’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Hugo Swire, said that China will continue to be a steady engine in the global economy, adding that the U.K. remains very welcoming of Chinese investment.

Many China and U.K. watchers will be closely following deals that are likely to be inked during the visit.

Faulconbridge says that based on Xi’s remarks, he could sense that Sino-U.K. ties were very “warm.”

CCTV News interviewed people in China and the U.K. about their views of China and British ties:

Story by CCTV News