China lifts sanctions on British lawmakers after Starmer–Xi talks – Firstpost

China has lifted sanctions imposed nearly five years ago on a group of serving British parliamentarians who had criticised Beijing’s human rights record.

The measures targeted nine British citizens, including five Members of Parliament and two peers in the House of Lords, after they spoke out on issues including allegations by campaigners of a genocide against the Uyghur Muslim minority in the Xinjiang region.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Friday that the sanctions were lifted following more than three hours of talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on Thursday.

“I did raise it. And the response of the Chinese as a result of our discussions is that the restrictions no longer apply. And the President Xi said to me, that means that all parliamentarians are free to travel to China,” BBC quoted her as saying.

“That rather vindicates my approach because that’s only because we’re here, that we have had the engagement,” he added.

Downing Street later clarified that the move applied specifically to “restrictions on parliamentarians,” noting that China had also previously imposed sanctions on other groups, including academics.

British officials stressed that the decision was not the result of any quid pro quo and that the UK was not lifting its own sanctions on Chinese officials in response.

Ahead of the announcement, the sanctioned parliamentarians issued a joint statement saying they would “rather remain under sanction indefinitely than have our status used as a bargaining chip to justify lifting British sanctions on those officials responsible for the genocide in Xinjiang.”

“We would reject any deal that prioritises our personal convenience over the pursuit of justice for the Uyghur people,” the group said.

Signatories included former Conservative leader Iain Duncan Smith, Deputy Speaker of the House of Commons Nusrat Ghani, and Tim Loughton.

With inputs from agencies