China has high hopes that Britain will make true of its words and fulfill its position of not taking sides in the sovereignty issue of South China Sea following the sighting of a British Royal Navy sailing close to one of the disputed islands.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told his counterpart, Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt during a meeting at the United Nations headquarters in New York on Monday that Britain should give the deserved respect to China's sovereignty and territorial integrity in the South China Sea, according to a report from Reuters.
In the meeting, Wang said that Beijing expects London to make true of its promise of not taking any sides in the territorial dispute.
The Chinese high-ranking diplomat added that China looks after Britain to implement more measures that will help promote bilateral ties among countries, instead of undermining mutual trust being built upon it, that is if the European nation wants to maintain a stable and proactive relationship with Beijing.
As revealed by the news outlet, both the Xi Jinping and Theresa May administrations have dealt on an agreement last month to look into the possibility where the two giant economies would reach a free trade deal after Britain finalizes its exit from the European Union bloc.
The so-called top notch deal, which is seen as a perfect way for the two nations to establish and strengthen bilateral ties, holds a great deal of appeal, especially to the conservative British government.
Hunt, meanwhile, reiterated during the meeting that Britain's position in the territorial issue will remain unbiased, adding that the UK government will be more than willing to facilitate dialogues with China with regards to the matter, as indicated in this report.
The British Foreign Secretary also said that Britain doesn't necessarily consider China's rapid rise in the global economic and trade as a threat to its government.
Inciting Incident
According to the Daily Star report, Beijing wasn't happy when the presence of a British Royal Navy warship was spotted sailing close to one of the islands developed by China in the South China Sea last month.
The incident registered as an act of provocation from the side of the Britons. The Chinese government has since lodged a complaint about it.
China has warned earlier that the ties between the two involved sovereignties could be put at risk if the British pushed on with its naval operation in the disputed region.
