Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng has called for renewed commitment to China-UK collaboration during his address at the 2026 'Icebreakers' Chinese New Year Dinner in Britain. The event, hosted by the historic 48 Group, comes as both nations work to implement recent high-level agreements between their leaders.
He emphasized the importance of building on the consensus reached between Chinese President Xi Jinping and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, which established a framework for a comprehensive strategic partnership. 'This partnership creates new opportunities for cooperation across multiple sectors,' stated He, who also serves on the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee.
The vice premier highlighted four key areas for enhanced collaboration:
Expanding trade and investment flows
Accelerating green energy transition
Strengthening financial sector cooperation
Boosting joint technological innovation
He urged businesses and institutions from both countries to transform this potential into concrete projects, recalling the original 'ice-breaking' spirit that initiated bilateral economic exchanges in the 1950s. The speech concluded with an appeal for sustained people-to-people exchanges to support long-term diplomatic stability.
