BEIJING — After years of strained relations due to trade disputes with the United States, China is once again a focal point for global diplomacy. On January 29, 2026, China's President Xi Jinping welcomed Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. The meeting marks a significant moment in international relations, as numerous countries are eager to engage with China and pursue business opportunities.
This month alone, five national leaders, including British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, have met with President Xi. Furthermore, Uruguay's President YamandĂș Orsi is expected to visit soon, marking the first visit from a South American leader since U.S. President Donald Trump took action against Venezuelan leader NicolĂĄs Maduro earlier in January.
The high-level visits from Canada and the United Kingdom are particularly notable as they are the first in at least eight years, while Ireland's prime minister's visit on January 5 was the first in 14 years. China's international engagement had been stunted by closed borders during the COVID-19 pandemic, but the nation fully reopened them at the beginning of 2023.
Yue Su, a principal economist at the Economist Intelligence Unit, commented on the situation: “These visits reflect managed, selective resets under rising U.S. policy uncertainty, rather than a strategic pivot to China. Keeping communication channels open with Beijing is increasingly seen as preferable to disengagement, particularly as the gains from selective resets with China become more visible, and U.S. policy has grown less predictable.”
Since his presidential term began 12 months ago, President Trump has imposed tariffs on China as well as other U.S. trading partners. His recent campaign to extend U.S. influence over countries like Venezuela, Iran, and Greenland provides China with a chance to position itself as a reliable partner for developing nations and a stabilizing force on the global stage.