Forms and policies of the history and development of Sino-British relations

Only three months after the founding of New China, the British government took the lead in recognizing People's Republic of China (PRC) as the "legitimate government" of China, despite the obstruction of the United States and after careful weighing. At the request of China, China and Britain began arduous negotiations on the establishment of diplomatic relations in the first half of 1950. Due to various reasons, especially Britain's attitude towards Taiwan Province, the relationship between the two countries has been in constant trouble, and the negotiations on the establishment of diplomatic relations have been tortuous, which was once stranded because of the outbreak of the Korean War. However, both China and Britain have the sincerity and desire to improve relations. Both sides can broaden their knowledge and reduce their differences. Shortly after the Geneva meeting, the two countries exchanged agents. The establishment of "semi-diplomatic relations" at the agent level is a pioneering work in the diplomatic history of New China. It is undoubtedly of great historical and practical significance to analyze this special diplomatic course. 1. Interest-driven-Diplomatic Recognition19491KLOC-0/year1October, People's Republic of China (PRC) was proclaimed, and the humiliating diplomatic history of the Chinese nation for nearly a hundred years is gone forever. On behalf of the Central People's Government, Mao Zedong announced to the world that the Central People's Government is willing to establish diplomatic relations with any foreign government that abides by equality, mutual benefit and mutual respect for territorial sovereignty. [1] On the same day, China's Foreign Minister Zhou Enlai sent the above-mentioned official letter from the Central People's Government to all governments. Zhou Enlai said in his official letter: "I think it is necessary for the people of China to establish normal diplomatic relations with other countries in the world." [2] At that time, China formulated three principles for establishing diplomatic relations with foreign countries: breaking diplomatic relations with Taiwan Province Province, supporting the new China to restore its legal status in the United Nations, and respecting China's sovereignty. Sino-British relations in the new China are also based on the above principles. 1950 65438+1October 6th, the British foreign secretary sent a note to Zhou Enlai, Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of the Central People's Government of People's Republic of China (PRC), announcing that the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland recognized the Central People's Government of People's Republic of China (PRC) as "the legitimate government of China" from now on, and expressed its willingness to establish relations with New China on the basis of equality, mutual benefit and mutual respect for territorial sovereignty. At the same time, the British government issued a statement revoking diplomatic recognition of the remnants of the Kuomintang. [3] Throughout China's revolutionary history of nearly a hundred years, the British government has always taken an unsympathetic attitude towards the China Revolution, and even taken hostile actions on a series of issues. So, what prompted Britain to make this diplomatic decision so quickly? This is not an expedient measure, but a pragmatic policy of the British government after weighing the pros and cons. Generally speaking, a country's foreign policy is formulated according to its own interests, especially the needs of economic interests, which determines that Britain's China policy has its own independent side, rather than passively following the United States, and it reflects Britain's own interests more. After the war, the starting point and ultimate goal of Britain's China policy was to safeguard and expand all British interests in China. First of all, Britain has huge economic interests in old China. Its huge investment in old China, although it was largely taken away before the victory of China People's Revolution, is estimated to still be 103674 million US dollars, [4] accounting for13 of all countries' investment in China, ranking first. Sino-British trade is also valued by Britain. Before World War II, the total trade volume between Britain and China reached 654.38+006 billion pounds. After World War II, the trade between Britain and China showed a downward trend, 1948 dropped to 6 million pounds. At this time, the United States is not only unwilling to recognize the new China, but even thinks that the time is not yet ripe to consider this issue. [5] After the victory of the China Revolution, large-scale economic construction will be carried out. The large market with a population of more than 400 million makes British trade with China have good prospects and irresistible attraction. Since the United States is willing to withdraw from the China market, Britain naturally wants to take the opportunity to fill this huge trade gap. To restore its economic position in China before the war, Britain must establish a stable and healthy relationship with the New China government. Secondly, Britain realized that the new China was also concerned about Britain's position and interests in Hong Kong. The liberation of Chinese mainland made Britain deeply worried about the future of Hong Kong. The fall of Hong Kong to Britain is the product of unequal treaties in history, and the Central People's Government has announced that it will not recognize these treaties. Besides, the prosperity and stability of Hong Kong are largely controlled by the Mainland. Britain has no intention of giving up Hong Kong, an important commercial and financial stronghold, to maintain its rule over Hong Kong. By emphasizing Hong Kong's important position in trade with China, the British expressed their willingness to discuss Hong Kong's political future with the * * * production party, hoping that Hong Kong would get rid of its control. They believe that both methods can be used as long as the producer government is recognized. Finally, it should be pointed out that British diplomatic recognition has its political purpose besides economic interests. During the Cold War, Britain and the United States, like each other, did not want to see an alliance between China and the Soviet Union. Instead, they tried to win over China through diplomatic recognition, at least to prevent China from leaning excessively towards the Soviet Union. 1949 12 16, Britain declared in a top secret telegram to the Prime Minister of New Zealand: "The only way to resist Russian influence is to let the * * * production party contact with the West, and the sooner the better." [6] To sum up, Britain took the lead in recognizing New China based on its own interests and tried to coordinate its relations with New China, but we should appreciate this move and think that this diplomatic recognition is wise and pragmatic. At that time, the Shanghai Ta Kung Pao pointed out: "The recognition of Britain widened the differences between Britain and the United States and completely distinguished the friendship between the British people and the diplomacy of capitalist countries. [7] Indeed, this diplomatic recognition will help the new China to open a gap in the Xiguan system and develop its relations with other countries in the world, especially the western capitalist countries. Two. Differences and Struggles-Negotiations on the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations The recognition of New China by Britain does not mean that it recognizes and affirms the socialist China under the leadership of China Producers' Party. As the wartime Prime Minister Churchill declared: "Recognizing a person's existence is not necessarily an act of recognition ... establishing diplomatic relations is not a compliment, but a convenience." [8] Due to the differences in understanding and position between China and Britain on the issue of "recognition", Britain has not severed all official relations with Taiwan Province Province, so it is not ready to establish formal diplomatic relations. As a result, the two countries began negotiations on establishing diplomatic relations on March 2, 1950. During the negotiations, the China government asked the British government to clarify three issues, that is, the British government must completely sever its relations with the Kuomintang in Taiwan Province Province, clarify the voting behavior of its representatives on behalf of China at the United Nations, and the attitude of the British government towards various Kuomintang institutions in Britain, Hongkong and other British territories and the national property of China. These three problems all revolve around the problem of Taiwan Province Province. In order to protect its interests in China, Britain adopted the policy of recognizing the new China, but on the issue of Taiwan Province Province, it adopted the position of following the United States. In other words, the "special relationship" between Britain and the United States or American factors determine Britain's policy towards Taiwan Province Province. At the beginning of the founding of New China, Britain's ownership of Taiwan Province Province was vague and unwilling to fulfill its promise in the Cairo Declaration. Although Britain officially recognized the new China soon, it still kept the British Consulate in Danshui, and did not completely cut off official ties with Taiwan Province Province. However, the British side stated in the negotiations that the function of the Danshui Consulate is to protect the local interests of British expatriates, which does not mean that Britain recognizes the Kuomintang government. This is hard for China to accept. The British government obeyed the will of the United States in various United Nations agencies and blocked the passage of the Soviet government's proposal to expel the Kuomintang government by voting against it or abstaining. China asked Britain to clarify its ambiguous attitude in the United Nations vote. However, the British side believes that because China failed to reach a majority in the previous voting, it had to abstain from voting. China is particularly concerned about Britain's attitude towards the "two airlines" aircraft. 1949165438+1On 9 October, all employees of China and China Central Airlines announced an uprising in Hongkong. On February 3rd, 65438, Zhou Enlai issued a statement, pointing out that it is absolutely not allowed to move or destroy the assets of the two airlines in Hong Kong in any way, and this property right of the China government should be respected by the Hong Kong government. [9] During the negotiations, British representative Hu said that the issue raised by China was quite complicated, involving international law and practice. Under the pressure of the United States, on May 10, the Privy Council of the United Kingdom issued a secret order to reject the judgment of the Hong Kong District Court that the property rights of the "two airlines" aircraft belonged to the people of China, and announced that the aircraft would be detained in Hong Kong before a final ruling was made on the property rights of the aircraft. In response to this reneging and unfriendly act, Zhang Hanfu, China's Deputy Foreign Minister, wrote to the British negotiators, seriously protesting this act of the British government and demanding that the seizure be lifted immediately, but the British government did not respond positively. The above facts show that Britain's China policy has two sides: it wants to maintain and develop the traditional trade relationship with New China, and it also wants to please the United States and maintain and consolidate the "special relationship" between the United States and Britain; I want to establish normal diplomatic relations with People's Republic of China (PRC), and I want to have de facto official contacts with the Kuomintang government in Taiwan Province Province. This is actually a refusal to establish diplomatic relations with the people of China on the basis of equality, mutual benefit and mutual respect for territorial sovereignty, thus preventing the further development of Sino-British relations. On May 22nd, 1950, a spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs made a speech on the negotiations on the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Britain, exposing the truth of the British government's attitude towards the negotiations on the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Britain to the people of the world, and asking the British government to further clarify these inconsistencies between words and deeds. [10] Of course, Britain's voluntary recognition of New China and the subsequent negotiations on the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Britain have brought some positive effects on the relations between the two countries in some aspects. The prospect of Sino-British relations is relatively optimistic, and both sides have made efforts to develop bilateral relations. However, because Britain regards maintaining its "special relationship" with the United States as the cornerstone of its diplomatic strategy, developing its relations with China is limited to not damaging the relationship between Britain and the United States, wavering with the United States on Taiwan Province policy, and even retreating from its original position, which has damaged the Sino-British relationship that has made a good start. The outbreak of the Korean War made this relationship worse, and Sino-British relations changed from dialogue to confrontation. Britain followed the United States in the war of aggression against Korea and took a series of hostile actions. On the issue of Taiwan Province Province, Britain opposes the China people's use of force to solve the problem of Taiwan Province Province, and advocates the internationalization of the problem of Taiwan Province Province. On the issue of concluding a peace treaty with Japan, Britain and the United States rejected China together; On the issue of China's representation in the United Nations, we voted with the United States for the United Nations to shelve the discussion on China's representation. In a conversation with Mrs. Nehru in May 1952, Mao Zedong said: He is very concerned about establishing formal diplomatic relations between China and Britain, but unfortunately, Britain's China policy has made it impossible. He criticized Britain's changeable attitude on the issue of Taiwan Province Province. [1 1] Due to Britain's tough hostile policy towards China, the negotiations on the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Britain could not be continued, and they ran aground indefinitely during the Korean War. Third, seeking common ground while reserving differences-The outbreak of the Korean War once interrupted Sino-British negotiations, but the diplomatic relations between China and Britain were not interrupted. British diplomats who remain in Beijing are still treated fairly and enjoy diplomatic privileges. When the containment policies such as threat of force and economic blockade failed, Britain tried to restart the stalled negotiations on the establishment of diplomatic relations. From 65438 to 0953, China began to formulate and implement the first five-year plan for the national economy, leading the people of the whole country to start large-scale economic construction. However, Sino-British trade and the position of British companies were both destroyed by the British government's embargo on China at the request of the United States. "No matter what happens in China, there is always a stabilizing factor:' China must do business with ease'," wrote the British industrial newspaper far eastern economic review, which has the closest relationship with the China market. At the same time, the article also points out: "When the absurd Korean War is over and China is free to devote itself to economic recovery, it will actually need everything, and British businessmen will play their part in meeting China's needs." [12] British businessmen estimate that the new and rapidly developing China has an incomparable great future than the old and subordinate semi-colonial China. The economic blockade of China is extremely disappointing in Britain, which has aroused protests from all walks of life, including government officials. Therefore, after the Korean War, Britain had to re-examine its China policy and show a friendly attitude. In this new China, the privileges of imperialism in China have been completely abolished, and the state power of people's democratic dictatorship has been consolidated day by day. By the time of the Geneva Conference, People's Republic of China (PRC) has entered a new stage of development, which will enable it to adopt a more flexible position in its policy towards imperialist countries. 1On April 26th, 954, an international conference was held in Geneva to discuss the issue of Korea, India and zhina, which provided an opportunity for the top leaders of China and Britain to exchange views directly on bilateral relations. During the Geneva meeting, the Chinese and British foreign ministers had frequent contacts. Foreign Minister Aidan hoped that China would send corresponding personnel to Britain to come to London. Zhou Enlai severely criticized Britain's attitude towards China's representation in the United Nations, but considering that Britain took a different position from the United States on the Indian zhina issue, he immediately expressed his willingness to send corresponding personnel to London. Zhou Enlai instructed Lei Ren-min, who is in charge of foreign trade, to find more contacts between Geneva's Xianershong and British trade circles, in an effort to break through the blockade and embargo policy imposed on China by the Paris Coordination Department controlled by the United States and open up the British market. As a member of the British delegation, Humphrey Humphrey Trevelyan attended the Geneva Conference, and he also felt that the China people's policy towards Britain suddenly loosened. Humphrey Humphrey Trevelyan recalled: "I held formal talks with Huan Xiang, Director of the Western Europe Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Lei Renmin, Vice Minister of Foreign Trade of China ... Many troubles encountered by overseas Chinese in Britain have now been solved. The exit permit has been issued, and even the negotiations on the closure of British companies in China have made progress. " Because the leaders of the two countries can put aside their disputes and seek common interests, the relations between the two countries have turned for the better. On June 1 1, the British government approved the sale of thousands of non-strategic materials to China. On June 16, Zhou Enlai and Aidan held talks. On June 17, China and Britain officially issued a joint communique, and People's Republic of China (PRC) and the British Central People's Government agreed that People's Republic of China (PRC) should set up a representative office in London, with the same status and tasks as the British representative office in Beijing. Accordingly, Humphrey Humphrey Trevelyan submitted a letter of appointment signed by Foreign Minister Aidan to Zhou Enlai on July 8. On September 2nd, the China government also appointed Guanzhen as its agent in Britain. In this way, after several twists and turns, China and Britain finally established diplomatic relations at the agency level. The British ruling and opposition parties unanimously warmly welcomed the improvement of Sino-British relations and regarded it as a positive result of the Geneva Conference. 1In August, 954, Zhou Enlai pointed out in his Foreign Policy Report that this improvement in Sino-British relations will help increase the possibility of establishing normal relations between China and western countries. After the Geneva Conference, Sino-British relations became closer and exchanges became more frequent. The improvement of Sino-British relations has promoted the development of Sino-British economic and trade relations. In 1950s and 1960s, under the western embargo, the trade volume between China and Britain increased by more than ten times, accounting for more than 19% of China's total foreign import and export, among which China's imports from Britain accounted for 16% of China's total imports. [14] Britain has become the third largest trading partner of China and the largest trading partner of Europe.