Xi Jinping UK State visit

[weltweit]

So this is a formal Chinese visit to the UK.

And there are significant potential Chinese investments into the UK under discussion, will the desire to get Chinese investment trump the discussions of human rights issues and what apart from 30bn of trade deals might the visit achieve?

Xi Jinping visit: Chinese leader given ceremonial welcome - BBC News

 

[Bahnhof Strasse]

Prince Philip has had his jaw wired shut for the duration.

 

[weltweit]

The BBC Article I linked to said that it is the Chinese depressing the international price of steel which is causing all the job losses in the UK steel industry at the moment.

 

[Bahnhof Strasse]

The BBC Article I linked to said that it is the Chinese depressing the international price of steel which is causing all the job losses in the UK steel industry at the moment.

I have no knowledge of this at all, but I would be willing to bet good money that this is an excuse to shed jobs rather than the reason.

 

[kebabking]

....will the desire to get Chinese investment trump the discussions of human rights issues and what apart from 30bn of trade deals might the visit achieve?...

given that China isn't going to bow to any pressure on its internal politics that we are prepared to bring to bear, i see no point whatsoever in bringing them up.

China has made very clear that the price of potentially very lucrative trade deals - which, for those getting sweaty, means highly skilled, highly paid, very taxable UK jobs to both reduce unemployment and pay for nice things - is silence on its internal politics. speak out - and achieve nothing anyway - and you don't get the deal.

Chinas stance, and its economic power and raft of potential other 'partners' to make that stance a reality, means that 'speaking out' over Chinas brutal, dictatorial, horrible policies has nothing whatsoever to do with making life better in China, its about making people here feel better about themselves.

you either deal with China as it wishes, or it goes elsewhere.

 

[weltweit]

.. you either deal with China as it wishes, or it goes elsewhere.

As I understand it Corbyn has threatened to bring up human right issues. Should he keep shtum?

 

[Maurice Picarda]

Prince Philip has had his jaw wired shut for the duration.

It's his son and heir who has more form for offending the Chinese, and bunked off a state tea party held for Xi-who-must-be-obeyed. Just as I reluctantly admire Corbyn for his republicanism, I have to give Chas props for determined frostiness towards Beijing.

 

[weltweit]

It's his son and heir who has more form for offending the Chinese, and bunked off a state tea party held for Xi-who-must-be-obeyed. Just as I reluctantly admire Corbyn for his republicanism, I have to give Chas props for determined frostiness towards Beijing.

Looking pretty chummy here:



Xi Jinping visit: Chinese leader given ceremonial welcome - BBC News

 

[Maurice Picarda]

For certain values of chummy.

 

[Bahnhof Strasse]

It's his son and heir who has more form for offending the Chinese, and bunked off a state tea party held for Xi-who-must-be-obeyed. Just as I reluctantly admire Corbyn for his republicanism, I have to give Chas props for determined frostiness towards Beijing.

And I'm doffing my cap for

Xi-who-must-be-obeyed

 

[kebabking]

As I understand it Corbyn has threatened to bring up human right issues. Should he keep shtum?

personally, i think he should - he's not going to acheive anything for people living in China by speaking out, and even if he offends Xi to the extent that he pulls out of every trade deal with the UK, China isn't going to change its system because either we ask it to, or we pressure it to.

Corbyn is going to face two problems with his holier-than-thou policy - firstly, like with the Trident (non)debate at conference, he's going to find that lots of unions, lots of MP's and lots of CLP's have a much more personal interest in good trade relations with China than he will find politically convenient, and secondly that - for example - those midlands seats that Corbyn needs to win in 2020 are going to come a lot harder if he wipes a billion quid or whatever out of JLR's order book by opening his mouth...

its also going to be an everlasting political open goal - Corbyn is big on 'engagement' with wierd and wonderful groups whose aims he says he doesn't agree with. if he pisses all over a trade deal with China in the name of truth and whats right, he'll be forever dogged by what he doesn't say to all these wierd and wonderful groups who have questionable practices. does he harangue HAMAS in public about their human rights record...?

 

[weltweit]

I like your reasoning kebabking

On another angle I wonder what Xi Jinping thinks about all this hob knobbing with our royalty is worth given that unlike the Saudi Royals, ours don't actually have any power to influence events.

 

[Pickman's model]

I like your reasoning kebabking

On another angle I wonder what Xi Jinping thinks about all this hob knobbing with our royalty is worth given that unlike the Saudi Royals, ours don't actually have any power to influence events.

i do hope there's no knobbing with our royal family. and whether they choose to shag on the cooker, that's their own affair.

 

[gimesumtruf]

Cameron likes regime change.

 

[kebabking]

..On another angle I wonder what Xi Jinping thinks about all this hob knobbing with our royalty is worth given that unlike the Saudi Royals, ours don't actually have any power to influence events.

au contraire.

the Chinese CP wants to learn from our royalty because they have weathered political, economic and social change, defeat, revolution and yet remained at the heart of power (ish... depending on your viewpoint) for a thousand years. compared to that, the Saudi's are a circus act.

when Xi goes to Saudi he thinks he's talking to a monkey in a dress (that famous Han non-racist attitude...). when he talks to the Queen, he thinks he's talking to a master political operator with fingers in every pie.

 

[JimW]

It's not so long since Pig-fucker had the Dalai Lama round for tea and that's all forgotten now so they could probably do a few face saving mentions of some rights issues safe in the knowledge that it'll be ignored, then get on tothe mutually agreeable exploitation fest.

 

[unrepentant85]

 

[weltweit]

Lots of posts on twitter #chinastatevisit about how Britain is abusing human rights after unfair ATOS fitness for work assessments. Many very sad stories.

 

[brogdale]

Are you watching Merkel?

That's what it's all about, no?

 

[weltweit]

Are you watching Merkel?

That's what it's all about, no?

Is he going to Germany next then?

 

[brogdale]

Is he going to Germany next then?

The message being "...see we've got 'big friends' outside of your club...you'd better give us some concessions or we'll fuck off.."

 

[kebabking]

Is he going to Germany next then?

its not that, the suggestion is that Cameron is demonstrating to Europe that he has other options, and that if they don't give him what he wants on this renegotiation, he'll do perfectly well on the outside, while the EU will have lost one of its big beasts in political/diplomatic/military terms, and economically, a full one seventh of the EU's economic activity....

 

[weltweit]

its not that, the suggestion is that Cameron is demonstrating to Europe that he has other options, and that if they don't give him what he wants on this renegotiation, he'll do perfectly well on the outside, while the EU will have lost one of its big beasts in political/diplomatic/military terms, and economically, a full one seventh of the EU's economic activity....

Oh, sorry, I got the wrong end of the stick.

Not completely sure the effectiveness of that as a strategy, German companies have worked hard to build relations with China, there are many German subsidiaries there now, they know the value of an emerging market, so what I mean is, I am sure Germany know Britain could make a go of life outside the EU.

 

[DotCommunist]

The message being "...see we've got 'big friends' outside of your club...you'd better give us some concessions or we'll fuck off.."

I'm guessing we won't be seeing a visit from Uncle Vlad anytime soon though...

 

[skyscraper101]

I for one would like to know what that transparent screen/cat artefact is on the right of this picture is (released by the official monarchy twitter)

 

[kebabking]

I'm guessing we won't be seeing a visit from Uncle Vlad anytime soon though...

depends how far the shift away from Europe is - the UK doesn't really give a shit about Ukraine, or Moldolva, or even Estonia or Latvia, if Vlad the Invader wants a big gas deal and makes it worth the UK's while then such a visit might happen... such a prospect might make Germany and France sweat a little, maybe make them more reasonable in negotiations...

on a more serious, genuine note, it depends what the US does. if the US continues its current policy of making belicose speeches about Russia, but does little about re-inforcing what it says is a weak NATO border, then the UK might well decide that not being allied to a continent that refuses to defend itself is a better policy.

 

[Yuwipi Woman]

Prince Philip has had his jaw wired shut for the duration.

That's too bad. The potential for entertainment just dropped markedly.

 

[Bahnhof Strasse]

That's too bad. The potential for entertainment just dropped markedly.

His hands are unbound, so I expect he's already pulled his eyes sideways at least 18 times so far...

 

[weltweit]

You can watch as the distinguished leader addresses the houses of parliament here:
President of China visits UK Parliament - News from Parliament

 

[Bahnhof Strasse]

I for one would like to know what that transparent screen/cat artefact is on the right of this picture is (released by the official monarchy twitter)

It's an x-ray machine, that woman ate a kitteh for lunch.