The Spectator Podcast: China's new diplomacy

This week, China agreed to consider a trade deal with Britain post-Brexit, but does a closer relationship with China expose Britain to its expansionist ambitions? We also talk to two experts on what exactly a no-deal Britain would look like; and last, why are Britain’s great Catholic schools facing extinction?

From cheap clothes to easy investments, it’s no secret that China’s rise has helped the whole world become richer. But at what cost? That’s the question that Asia expert Michael Auslin asks in this week’s cover, as Jeremy Hunt leads Britain into closer ties with China. Michael argues that Chinese trade paves the way for Beijing to strong-arm countries into China’s sphere of influence, supported by its rapidly growing military. Michael joins the podcast together with Kerry Brown, former British diplomat and Professor of China Studies at King’s College London. Michael explains China’s integrated approach to ‘imperialism in reverse’:

‘It uses a variety of different types of levels of influence, pressure, in some cases intimidation, to get countries – once they are deeply linked in with China, or even indebted to China – to essentially follow the preferences of Chinese policymakers on foreign policy issues.’