China says UK has 'poisoned' relations

The country's ambassador to the UK, Liu Xiaoming, told reporters that the actions of the UK, including questions over alleged rights abuses in China's Xinjiang region, had "poisoned" the relationship between the two nations.

Liu accused unnamed British politicians of "clinging" to the idea of a Cold War with China, characterising the Asian nation as a hostile threat and suggesting the British government was being coerced by the U.S..

He warned the UK that it was was "decoupling from the future" if it tried to distance itself from the Communist state.

Liu said the United Kingdom would "pay the price" if it wanted to treat China as a hostile state, but insisted this was only a consequence of not working with China instead of a pointed threat.