As superpowers clash, Britain is caught in the middle

From Hong Kong to Huawei and the Russia report, Boris Johnson is charting a difficult path between the world’s most powerful nations this week, writes Kim Sengupta

The PM knows that a key factor in seeking to avoid a confrontation with Beijing is the need for post-Brexit trade deals with economic powers (Getty)

The suspension of the extradition treaty with Hong Kong by the British government was the latest sign of a frayed relationship between London and Beijing and brought predictable threats of retaliation from China.

The scrapping of the deal was to be expected after the Chinese government imposed draconian security laws on Hong Kong and follows similar moves by Canada and Australia, with the US due to follow imminently.

But the UK measures, announced by Dominic Raab on Monday, markedly failed to impose sanctions on any Chinese officials over Hong Kong or other instances of rights violation by Beijing such as on the Uighur Muslim community in Xinjiang, as the US has done.