The United Kingdom recognized the People’s Republic of China on 6 January 1950, becoming the first Western major country to recognize New China. China and the UK established chargé d'affaires-level diplomatic relations on 17 June 1954, and bilateral ties were upgraded to ambassadorial-level on 13 March 1972. Since the establishment of diplomatic ties, China-UK relations have generally moved forward on a positive and stable path despite some twists and turns. The two countries established a comprehensive strategic partnership in May 2004, subsequently instituting high-level exchange mechanisms such as the Annual Prime Minister’s Meeting, Economic and Financial Dialogue, Strategic Dialogue and High-Level People-to-People Dialogue. During President Xi Jinping’s state visit to the UK in October 2015, the two countries jointly issued the China-UK Joint Declaration on Building a Global Comprehensive Strategic Partnership for the 21st Century.

In recent years, China and Britain have maintained high-level exchanges. In January 2018, British Prime Minister Theresa May visited China. In July, British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt visited China and held the 9th China-UK Strategic Dialogue. In June 2019 Chinese Vice Premier Hu Chunhua and British Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond co-hosted the 10th China-UK Economic and Financial Dialogue.  In February and March 2020 and in March 2022, Chinese President Xi Jinping had telephone conversations with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson respectively. In September 2022, as President Xi Jinping's Special Representative, Vice President Wang Qishan attended the state funeral for Queen Elizabeth II of the UK. In May 2023, as President Xi Jinping's Special Representative, Vice President Han Zheng attended the coronation ceremony of King Charles III of the UK. In August 2023, British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly visited China. In September 2023, Chinese Premier Li Qiang met with British Prime Minister Sunak on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in New Delhi, India. In August 2024, President Xi Jinping had a telephone call with Prime Minister Keir Starmer and in November the two leaders met on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. In October 2024, British Foreign Secretary David Lammy visited China. In January 2025, Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng and British Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves co-hosted the 11th China-UK Economic and Financial Dialogue in Beijing. In February, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi visited the UK and held the 10th China-UK Strategic Dialogue with British Foreign Secretary David Lammy.

The UK remains China’s third-largest trading partner in Europe, as well as third-largest investment destination and third-largest source of foreign investment from Europe, while China is the UK’s largest trading partner in Asia. Over the past four years, bilateral trade between China and the UK has maintained around $100 billion. In 2024, bilateral trade reached $98.36 billion, marking a year-on-year increase of 0.4%, with China’s exports to the UK totaling $78.87 billion (up 1.2% year-on-year) and imports from the UK $19.49 billion (down 2.9% year-on-year). As of July 2024, two-way investment between China and the UK stood at $57 billion.  

China and the UK have maintained exchanges and cooperation in culture, science and education. In 2012, China and the UK established a High-Level People-to-People Dialogue mechanism. The two countries signed an intergovernmental agreement on science and technology cooperation, along with over 20 sector-specific agreements or MoUs. The UK is among the first European countries to engage in educational cooperation and exchanges with China, and hosts the largest number of Chinese students in Europe. Currently, there are 30 Confucius Institutes and 164 Confucius Classrooms in the UK, the highest number among European countries. 

In recent years, the Chinese and British militaries have maintained exchanges and cooperation. The two sides established a Defense Consultation mechanism in 2002 (upgraded to the Defense Strategic Consultation in 2010), which has been held 10 times so far. The latest session was convened in China in September 2024.  

By the end of 2024, there were 69 Chinese provinces and cities that have sister relationships with localities in the UK.