Spotlight: China, Britain seal global partnership with joint declaration, personal bond

Visiting Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday had more than four hours of talks with British Prime Minister David Cameron and enjoyed fish and chips in a traditional pub, in a stroke of no-necktie diplomacy that observers say will cement the global partnership between the two countries.

After days of official meetings in central London, Xi experienced private, family-style hospitality and a British night at Chequers, a tranquil country estate that has hosted many foreign dignitaries since becoming the official retreat for prime ministers in the 1920s.

The two leaders strolled on the lawn and had in-depth discussions on governance, bilateral relations and global affairs. Besides treating Xi with snacks at the nearby pub, Cameron also hosted a dinner for the president at his residence.

During the talks, Xi said his state visit to Britain has turned out to be a huge success with fruitful results, and he is fully confident that China-Britain relations will enter a "golden era."

China is willing to enhance mutually beneficial cooperation with all countries to realize common development and prosperity, and will strengthen cooperation with Britain in such fields as reform, innovation, rule of law and fighting corruption, Xi told Cameron at Chequers.

China's 13th five-year plan, which is to be rolled out soon, means a more favorable environment, wider market and diversified business opportunities for foreign countries to participate in China's development, Xi said.

As a responsible major country, China is ready to make more contribution to world peace and development, he said.

Cameron echoed Xi on the elevation of bilateral relations, calling it a "win-win decision" and urging both sides to implement the results of this visit.

Britain, he said, backs China in playing a bigger role in international institutions, supports the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, the reform of the International Monetary Fund and the internationalization of Chinese currency RMB, and is willing to help promote China-EU relations.

Xi was the first Chinese president to visit Chequers, an important venue for British diplomacy located near Ellesborough, to the south of Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire, at the foot of the Chiltern Hills.

Compared to No. 10 Downing Street, the countryside retreat will help create a more relaxed atmosphere for discussions, during which the leaders can free themselves from diplomatic etiquette and exchange views as if they were at a friend's party, said Xu Xiujun, a scholar at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

Xu's remarks were seconded by Stephen Perry, chairman of the 48 Group Club, an independent British business network committed to promoting links with China.

"The effect ... is to enable the two leaders to discuss any world affairs as friends and not trying to push views on the other," said Perry, who was among a group of British friends met by Xi earlier in the day. "This enables them to work together to find solutions."

Perry told Xinhua that he has the feeling that Chinese and Britons enjoy being together.

"It is much more than just business," he said. "My wish that Britain develops a special relationship with China has been launched in a very real way."

JOINT DECLARATION

Earlier in the day, China and Britain issued a joint declaration on building a "global comprehensive strategic partnership for the 21st century."

In the document, the two sides pledged joint efforts in fields ranging from RMB internationalization and the free trade talks between China and the EU to cyber security and climate change.

Xi's state visit to Britain, the first by a Chinese president in a decade, "opens a golden era" in China-Britain relations featuring enduring, inclusive and win-win cooperation, says the joint declaration.

"The two sides recognize the global significance and strategic importance of stronger China-UK relations in promoting global peace, stability and prosperity," adds the document.

The two sides also vowed to enhance bilateral trade and investment and strengthen political trust based on equality and mutual respect.

Britain "welcomes the progressive participation of Chinese companies in its civil nuclear energy projects," says the declaration, issued one day after Chinese and French companies signed an agreement to cooperate in the building of a nuclear power plant at Hinkley Point in southwestern England.

Cameron described the deal as "historic" as the project, with a Chinese consortium taking a 33.5-percent stake, will provide reliable, affordable energy to nearly 6 million homes and create more than 25,000 jobs.

The two sides also expressed their strong interest in cooperating on each other's major initiatives, namely China's "Belt and Road" Initiative and Britain's National Infrastructure Plan and the Northern Powerhouse program, and agreed to further discuss a "China-UK infrastructure alliance."

In the declaration, both sides voiced support for the Shanghai Stock Exchange and the London Stock Exchange to carry out a feasibility study on a stock connection, and Britain reaffirmed its support for the inclusion of RMB into the International Monetary Fund's special drawing rights basket.

Meanwhile, the two countries called for the swift launch of a joint feasibility study on a China-EU free trade agreement.

They also agreed to establish a high-level security dialogue, and not to conduct or support cyber-enabled theft of intellectual property, trade secrets or confidential business information.

In addition, the two countries pledged to increase multilateral cooperation to help resolve conflicts and tackle the conditions that give rise to terrorism and extremism.

PERSONAL CHEMISTRY

While the declaration focuses more on political and economic collaboration, Xi is bringing more cultural flavor and personal bond to the ties during the visit.

Xi and his wife, Peng Liyuan, bid farewell to Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh at Buckingham Palace on Thursday. Xi expressed his sincere appreciation for the hospitality and thoughtful arrangement made by the British royal family, government and people, saying the visit has given him a "deep and beautiful impression."

In another event on Thursday, Xi addressed the opening ceremony of an annual meeting of Confucius Institutes in Britain, saying the essence of Chinese and British cultures has brought a fantastic "chemical reaction" into their own people's way of thinking and lifestyle through people-to-people exchanges.

By attending the event, which included a student's recitation of Xi's poem praising a hardworking county official, the president is apparently winning more hearts and minds.

Steve Bradley, a professor of economics at Britain's Lancaster University, said he was so proud of his student who recited the poem.

"It's very important that the president comes to support the Confucius Institutes and Classrooms around the UK. It helps our relations to be strengthened over the next few years," Bradley said.

Professor Lutz Marten, director of London Confucius Institute, said he agrees with Xi that true cooperation between countries involves people and hearts.

"It is through exchange visits, through learning about language, culture and literature that relationship between the two countries becomes meaningful," Marten said. "I believe only on the basis of this can we build successful political and economic collaboration."

Since his arrival in Britain, Xi has in many speeches cited the friendly exchanges between the two countries in history and modern days.

He recalled how 24 Chinese naval cadets took part in the Normandy landings during World War II and received personal thanks from then British leader Winston Churchill for their gallantry, and how China helped save a British military medic earlier this year who contracted the Ebola virus while volunteering in Sierra Leone.

On Thursday, Xi met a group of British friends including former Prime Minister Gordon Brown. The president thanked them for their painstaking efforts to make China-Britain relations remain unshakable and grow firmer, saying he hopes that they will continue to support the development of bilateral relations.

The president, accompanied by Prince Andrew, the Duke of York, also visited Inmarsat, a London-based leading provider of global satellite communication services, and voiced hopes that the company can continue to enhance cooperation with China.

Peng, the Chinese first lady, visited the Royal College of Music in another event aimed at promoting people-to-people exchanges between the two nations.

After dinner at Chequers with Cameron and his wife, Xi and Peng took a flight to Manchester for the final day of the state visit. Endi