China’s Xi offers ‘sincere sympathies’ to Britain after queen’s death

Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday offered “sincere sympathies to the British government and people” following the death of Queen Elizabeth II.  

“Xi Jinping, representing the Chinese government and the Chinese people, as well as in his own name, expresses deep condolences,” a statement said. “Her passing is a great loss to the British people.”  

The British queen died at her Scottish Highland retreat on Thursday at the age of 96.  

The statement, released on Chinese state media, noted the queen was the first British monarch to visit China and praised the longevity of her reign as the longest-serving monarch in British history.  

“Xi Jinping stressed that he attaches great importance to the development of China-UK relations,” that statement said, adding he was “willing to work with King Charles III... to promote the healthy and stable development of bilateral relations for the benefit of the two countries and their peoples.”  

Britain invaded China in 1839 to try and stop the rejection of British interference in the country. The first thing it did was occupy Hong Kong, a lightly inhabited fishing island at the time.   

This led to the opium wars, where Hong Kong was given to Britain in 1841, and in 1842 the treaty of Nanking was signed, formally ending the first opium war.  

Hong flourished as a gateway between east and west, and in 1898, China signed Hong Kong over to Britain for an additional 99 years, along with the New Territories portion of the region.   

In the 80s, after much negotiation, Britain and China came to an agreement whereby they signed a pact stating that Hong Kong would return to China in 1997 but keep its semi-autonomy and way of life.   

Hong Kong was peacefully returned to China on July 1, 1997, ending 156 years of colonial rule in Hong Kong.  

(Staff reporter and AFP)