China and UK must be able to talk frankly and cooperate, Starmer tells Xi

BEIJING/LONDON (Reuters) -British Prime Minister Keir Starmer told Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday the two countries must be able to talk frankly about their disagreements and also pursue closer economic ties and work together on global issues.

Xi told Starmer during a phone call that he hoped Britain would "look at China objectively and rationally", the Chinese official news agency Xinhua said.

Starmer's office said the two leaders had discussed areas of collaboration including trade, the economy and education, and agreed that as permanent members of the U.N. Security Council they should work closely on global security and climate change.

"The prime minister added that he hoped the leaders would be able to have open, frank and honest discussions to address and understand areas of disagreement when necessary, such as Hong Kong, Russia's war in Ukraine and human rights," a statement issued by Starmer's office said.

Chinese state media said the call had been requested by Britain, and that Xi and Starmer had discussed stepping up cooperation in finance, the green economy and artificial intelligence. Xinhua said Xi had congratulated Starmer on his Labour Party's election victory in July.

Starmer's government has said it plans an audit of Britain's relationship with China to understand and respond to the challenges and opportunities Beijing poses.

Ties between Britain and China have in recent years been strained over Hong Kong, British accusations of rights abuses, and concerns about Chinese firms' involvement in providing critical infrastructure.

In 2022, then-Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, a Conservative, declared the end of a "golden era" of relations with China that one of his predecessors, David Cameron, had championed.

Xinhua quoted Xi as saying China was ready to engage "dialogue on an equal footing, on the basis of mutual respect... (to) enhance understanding and mutual trust."

China's embassy in London said Starmer told Xi there had been no change in Britain's policy towards Taiwan, which Beijing claims as its own territory - a stance strongly objected to by the island's government.

"President Xi pointed out that China places high importance on the UK's desire for more engagement and dialogue, and will maintain exchanges with the UK at all levels," the embassy said.

Like most Western countries, Britain does not recognise Taiwan as a state but it does operate an office in Taipei which promotes trade and educational ties and assists travellers.

(Reporting by Joe Cash in Beijing and William James in London, Editing by Christina Fincher, Andrew Heavens, Timothy Heritage and Diane Craft)