UK PM contender Liz Truss plans to designate China a 'threat to national security': Report

UK PM race front-runner, Liz Truss has planned to officially designate China as a "threat" to national security for the first time as part of a tougher stance toward Beijing. According to the British daily, The Times, if the foreign secretary is elected UK's prime minister, she has pledged to change the current foreign policy.

As per the report, Truss also intends to reopen the integrated review, which examines the priorities for defence and diplomacy in Britain over the coming ten years. Her allies assert that if the action takes place, China will be given a status equivalent to that of Russia, which the review defines as an "acute threat."

China was described in the review as a "systemic competitor" with which the UK should strengthen its trade ties. However, it must be cautious of the risks it may pose to national security. The report stated that while "open trading economies like the UK will need to engage with China and remain open to Chinese trade and investment, they must also protect themselves against practices that have a negative impact on prosperity and security."

Truss may put national security concerns ahead of economic cooperation, say experts

Truss reportedly wants to implement the change as part of an effort to rein in the Treasury's efforts to improve economic cooperation with Beijing. On the other hand, Rishi Sunak, Truss' rival and the former chancellor, came very close to signing trade agreements that would have made the UK the "market of choice" for Chinese businesses, The Times had reported earlier this month. Truss, however, is predicted to put national security concerns ahead of economic cooperation, according to political experts.

According to a Truss campaign source, the British Foreign Secretary "has toughened the UK's stance on Beijing since becoming foreign secretary and would continue to take a hawkish stance as PM", The Times reported. As a response to China's Belt and Road initiative, she has been active in denouncing China's economic coercion and working with the G7 and other allies to mobilise investment into low-and middle-income countries.

Meanwhile, China has been dubbed by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken as the greatest threat to the international system of rules-based order. Notably, tensions between the US and China remain tense since US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi snubbed Bejing to visit Taiwan earlier this month. Beijing opposes any attempts to recognise Taiwan as a sovereign nation and claims Taiwan as part of its territory.

(Image: AP)