Asia-Pacific economic focus for new UK government
A potentially significant reset of UK policy is underway towards Asia-Pacific that builds from the post-Brexit pivot to the region
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KEIR Starmer has spent more time on foreign policy issues than perhaps any recent UK prime minister during the crucial first 100 days in office. Yet, much of his attention has so far focused on the Middle East and Europe, not least with the wars involving Israel and Ukraine.
However, recent days have seen Asia-Pacific rise to the fore, including the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and China. The new UK government sees the region as crucially important to UK foreign and economic policy, post-Brexit, and this has been showcased in recent days.
Starmer is making his first trip to the vast region, to Samoa, to attend the biennial Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) where he is joined by King Charles fresh from his visit to Australia. The first CHOGM was held in 1971 in Singapore, and this year’s is the 27th, reflecting the continuing robustness of the Commonwealth, despite many criticisms made about it.
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