Almost 30 years after the visit of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II to China, Prince Williams has made another “highest-level” royal trip as he arrived in the country on Sunday, officially kicking off his four-day tour.
Aimed at promoting and enhancing Sino-British relations, the Duke of Cambridge is expected to visit Shanghai, Yunnan Province and Beijing upon the Chinese People's Institute of Foreign Affairs' invitation.
In a Global Times news, Ma Zhenghang said that Prince William served as the official representative of the United Kingdom and the Queen. Ma is China's former ambassador to the U.K.
With the four-day visit, U.K. is perceived to have been taking the initiative to strengthen its diplomatic ties with the country after several critical incidents, Renmin University of China's Institute of International Affairs director, Wang Yiwei, told the Global Times.
In 2014, a number of British politicians reportedly supported the Occupy protests in Hong Kong. Two years earlier, Prime Cameron had met with the Dalai Lama.
In April 2013, China foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said that the diplomatic ties between the country and the U.K. were hurt by the Dalai Lama-Cameron meeting.
However, Ma emphasized that the country's officials regard high value to Prince William's visit, stating that both nations have earlier committed to further promote their bilateral ventures that focus on reform, innovation and growth.
Feng Zhongping confirmed that China will give Prince William a high-level reception as he is considered as Britain's next King. Feng is the Deputy Director of China's Institute of Contemporary International Relations.
The Duke was invited to grace the opening of the GREAT Festival of Creativity today, March 2, at the Long Museum in China.
In Nov. 2014, the Buckingham Palace stated that "the Duke will also attend events in Beijing and elsewhere to promote U.K.-China relations, people to people links, and to support his work to combat the illegal wildlife trade and support wildlife conservation."
Last week, foreign ministry spokesperson Hong Lei said that China is looking forward to advancing Britain's understanding of its culture and tradition. Government officials also hope that the visit will have a significant positive impact to Sino-British ties.