A Chinese military delegation visited Britain and France from June 24 to Saturday to discuss the development of bilateral defense relations, China’s Ministry of Defense said on Saturday.
The People’s Liberation Army’s defense strategy consultancy delegation exchanged in-depth views on international and regional security issues of common concern and strengthened mutual understanding and trust, the ministry said in a statement.
Asked about the visit, a spokesman for the British Ministry of Defense said that the ministry had hosted a Strategic Defense Dialogue in London.
“The discussions covered the respective National Defense Strategies; the situation in Ukraine; Security in the Indo-Pacific; Stability and Strategic Proliferation; the South China Sea and Taiwan; and the UK-China military relationship,” the spokesman said in a statement.
British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly could visit China in July, officials say, as Britain looks to improve relations with China and engage in areas such as trade, investment and climate change, while guarding against threats to national security.
By Reuters staff in Beijing and Alistair Smout in London
