The Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation (BRF) kicks off this week, bringing the conversation of the mammoth Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) to the global stage once more. Since the BRI was first proposed in 2013, countless bilateral agreements have been signed and celebrated, alongside a number of push backs and concerns over the initiative. Whether voices from the west approve or not, the Belt and Road, with 126 countries and 29 international organisations already signed up by April 19, isn’t going anywhere. But how will the initiative affect the UK, especially in light of our very own trade concerns as Brexit is delayed by a further six months?
As British Prime Minister Theresa May emphasised during her official visit toChinalast year, after leaving the EU 'we - theUnited Kingdom- will be free to strike our own trade deals,” which may be one reason behind the fact that the friendship between theUKandChinahas ramped up in recent years.
Since the Cameron-Osborne government first became very focused onChina, theUKhas looked east more frequently for manufacturing and engineering services, whileChinahas focused on theUKfor financial services. In an interview with People’s Daily Online, Lord James Meyer Sassoon, Chairman of the China-Britain Business Council, said thatChinaand theUKare perfect partners.