In a speech on Britain’s relationship with China, UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly warns that a war across the Taiwan Strait would have global repercussions, urging against unilateral action that would alter the status quo. And while he acknowledged that China represents an authoritarian tradition at odds with Britain’s, he said he wanted Britain to engage directly with China, bilaterally and multilaterally, in a reflection of its “global importance.” “We have an obligation to engage with future generations because otherwise we would be failing in our duty to sustain, and shape, the international order. To evade that challenge would be a sign not of strength but of weakness,” Cleverly said.
