Xi Jinping congratulates Keir Starmer on appointment as UK Prime Minister

Xi congratulated Burnham on his appointment as prime minister, according to Chinese state news agency Xinhua, emphasising that the shared interests of China and the United Kingdom outweighed their differences in social systems.

“Both sides should respect and trust each other, transcend differences, seek common ground while reserving differences, and expand mutually beneficial cooperation,” Xi was quoted as saying.

“Both China and the UK are major technological powers with abundant resources in education, culture and sports. They should maintain an open and forward-looking approach and strengthen exchanges and cooperation in various fields.”

Xi also urged the UK to work with China as a fellow major economy and permanent member of the UN Security Council, in backing multilateralism and free trade, and pushing for an “equitable and orderly multipolar world”.

A read-out from Beijing released in the evening did not say if the wars in Iran and Ukraine figured in the talks.