British Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero Ed Miliband looks on during a visit to Springfields (Preston Lab), National Nuclear Laboratory facility in Preston, Britain, February 6, 2025. OLI SCARFF/Pool via REUTERS
BEIJING, Feb 28 (Reuters) – British Energy Secretary Ed Miliband will visit China in March to restart talks on energy cooperation and meet Chinese investors, three sources with direct knowledge of the plan told Reuters, as the Labour government seeks closer China ties amid worsening U.S.- and EU-China relations.
British officials have said they want to recalibrate many of the previous Conservative Party-led government’s positions on China, particularly around accepting Chinese job-creating investment and allowing Chinese firms to provide critical infrastructure, such as nuclear power plants.
Nuclear power will still be off the table when Miliband is expected to sit down on March 17 in Beijing with his Chinese counterpart, Zhang Jianhua, to revive the UK-China Energy Dialogue, two of the sources said. Collaboration in other forms of clean and sustainable energy, as well as energy security, will be on the agenda instead.
On the same day, Miliband will pitch Britain to Chinese private investors at a roundtable meeting, one of the sources added. He will be in China for two days and will only visit Beijing, the sources said, all of whom spoke on condition of anonymity.
Britain’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Reporting by Joe Cash in Beijing; Editing by Lincoln Feast
