Source · Select Committees · National Security Strategy (Joint Committee)
Recommendation 24
24
Not Addressed
The Government must articulate more clearly how it will balance extensive security and supply chain...
Recommendation
The Government must articulate more clearly how it will balance extensive security and supply chain risks with its desire for closer economic ties with China. It should, for example, be more proactive in raising the issue of Beijing’s ongoing support for Moscow continuing to pursue its war in Ukraine. Additionally, when signing new international treaties and economic agreements, the Government should commit to publishing an accompanying statement which makes it clear how national security considerations have been accounted for in detail. These assessments should make sure to include examination and mitigation of emerging challenges including, but not limited to, espionage, transnational repression and AI-enabled harms. (Recommendation, Paragraph 105)
Government Response Summary
The government outlined its existing strategic approach to China, balancing threats and opportunities, and described current actions to challenge risks and engage on issues like Russia's war. However, it did not commit to articulating its balancing act more clearly or publishing detailed national security statements with new treaties/agreements.
Government Response
Not Addressed
HM Government
Not Addressed
We are taking a long-term, strategic approach, rooted in the UK national interest. We recognise that China poses a series of threats to UK national security, and we challenge these robustly – from cyber-attacks, foreign interference and espionage targeting our democratic institutions, to transnational repression of Hong Kongers and China’s support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. We are also alive to the fact that China presents the UK with opportunities as the world’s second largest economy and the UK’s third largest trading partner. We will therefore continue to develop a consistent and pragmatic approach to economic engagement, without compromising our national security. The Government will not hesitate to use our powers to protect national security wherever we identify concerns. We have a range of effective measures in place, including the National Security and Investment Act, which gives the Government powers to intervene in acquisitions that may give rise to risks to the UK’s national security. We will increase our focus towards promoting industries and technologies that drive economic growth, while securing supply chains in critical and important sectors. Our new Industrial Strategy and Trade Strategies are central to this. We engage China regularly on its political and military backing for Russia, including the provision by Chinese companies of dual-use goods and support to Russia’s military industrial complex, including at Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary-level and, most recently, during the Prime Minister’s visit to Beijing in January 2026. When meeting Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang in January 2026, the Prime Minister called on China to end economic support for Russia’s war effort, including companies providing dual-use technologies, and urged them to use their influence on Putin to end his aggression in Ukraine.