LONDON (CU)_Britain intends to expand its influence among democratic nations in the Indo-Pacific region in order to try and moderate China’s global dominance, as part of the government’s post-Brexit foreign policy priorities.
As London conducts its biggest review British foreign and defence policy since the end of the Cold War, Britain is expected to be at odds with China, as Prime Minister Boris Johnson will planning to be on the forefront of a renewed, rules-based international order which is based on free trade and cooperation.
Since UK’s withdrawal from the European Union which completed at the end of last year, PM Johnson’s government has pledged an “Integrated Review”, which will show that Britain still had a significance influence on the world stage.
Accordingly, the Prime Minister has rescheduled his previously postponed visit to India for April, while a British aircraft carrier is also set to be deployed to the Indo-Pacific region, which London identified as an “increasingly the geopolitical centre of the world”.
This year, Britain is set to hold two influential roles in the global arena: hosting the G7 summit in June, and the COP26 climate conference in November.
Meanwhile, PM Johnson has expressed his optimism about United Kingdom’s place in the world, and in London’s ability to “seize the opportunities ahead”.
However, the government’s post-Brexit foreign policy, which will be laid out in a 100-page document on Tuesday (16 March), in which the government will set out the concrete measures they which to undertake in order to deliver on the Prime Minister’s rhetoric, at a time when the country’s economy is struggling to come to terms with the realities of Brexit amidst a global pandemic.
Although China is on course to become the world’s largest economy, however, relations between London and Beijing have frayed badly over several issues including the communist nation’s handling of former British colony Hong Kong.
Moreover, tensions between the two nations are expected to intensify even further, with Britain’s largest ever warship, The Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier’s first deployment set to involve the South China Sea.
In the document, the British government will also highlight the importance of UK’s relations with the United States, as London is seeking a trade deal with Washington and reassurance over where it sits in US President Joe Biden’s international priorities.
