The spit in the face of Lithuanian Minister G. Landsbergis comes from our most powerful allies - R. Sunak refused to classify China as a threat to UK security: "Without dialogue with it, we will not be able to solve common global challenges"

 "Rishi Sunak has hinted that he will drop plans to declare China a national security 'threat' as part of a major overhaul of UK foreign policy. Speaking to reporters accompanying him to the G20 summit in Bali, UK Prime Minister has softened his views on Beijing and twice refused to back his predecessor Liz Truss's plans to raise China's status to a "threat" in the UK government's upcoming foreign and defense prioritization programme.

 

    The initial version of the UK's integrated review published last year described China only as a "systemic competitor". When asked if he would implement L. Truss's plan to tighten the United Kingdom's position, R. Sunaks first called China a "systemic threat", then quickly corrected himself. "My view on China is simple," he said. - I think that China definitely poses a systemic threat - well, a systemic challenge - to our values ​​and interests and is definitely the biggest state threat to our economic security. That's how I feel about China."   

 

    Then he added: "But I also think that China is an indisputable fact of the world economy, and without dialogue with it, we will not be able to solve common global challenges like climate change, public health, or really solve the problems of Russia and Ukraine." Considered as a "threat", Beijing would become equal to Russia and this would have a major impact on UK foreign policy in the region.

 

    Meanwhile, Mr Sunak's words represent a softening of the stance he took during the Tory leadership race in the summer, when he called China "the biggest threat to the security and prosperity of the UK and the world this century". The more ambiguous tone puts him closer to Boris Johnson, who as prime minister emphasized the importance of dialogue and trade with China. When asked for the second time whether he refuses to reassign China to the threat category, R. Sunaks replied that his position is "very consistent with our allies" and their security strategies. 

 

    "If you look at the U.S. national security strategy that came out just a couple of weeks ago and look at how they describe their approach to China and how to deal with it, I think you'll see that it's very similar to what I just described -- he said. "The Canadians, the Australians, all their versions of this strategy say similar things."

 

    He also refused to say that the UK should send arms to Taiwan, as Truss controversially promised when she was foreign secretary. "We are considering all these things as we update the integrated review," he said.

 

    Some senior members of parliament suggested that the change in China's status would have been more of a PR stunt than a decisive measure. Alicia Kearns, who chairs the House of Commons foreign affairs committee, said: "It is too easy for the Chinese Communist Party to take a show rather than a substantive approach." "Having changed China's designation would have made us outliers among our Five Eyes partners," Kearns said, referring to the Western intelligence group of which the United Kingdom is a member. "We risk detracting from developing a more strategic approach."

 

Conclusion: we in Lithuania, due to G. Landsbergis's desire for honor, have made a mess for China quite unnecessarily and now we trade expensively with China through intermediaries.