New UK leader expected to promote Sino-UK relations: China Daily editorial

Going, going, and finally gone. That Theresa May's tenure as British prime minister has come to an end with the announcement of her resignation on Friday is no surprise to people both inside and outside Britain. After all, as the British leader tasked with taking her country out of the European Union, she failed to produce an acceptable deal for the country to proceed with its exit from the EU.

The deeply unpopular Brexit deal she repeatedly and vainly tried to push through Parliament not only put an end to her own political life but also enlarged the partisan and social divide over whether and how Britain should leave the EU.

Whoever succeeds May will face the formidable tasks of finding a solution to the Brexit dilemma and bringing certainty and confidence to the United Kingdom's relations with its major international partners, including China.

This will not be easy given the deep divisions within the ruling Conservative Party itself, and the lack of any charismatic contender with the political nous to rally the party, never mind the country.

And all the while, the clock is ticking. The EU has extended the date until Oct 31 for Britain to reach an agreement on a Brexit deal, but that is not much time for May's successor to come up with something radically new that will break the impasse.

At the same time, he or she will be looked upon to ensure the continuity and stability of Britain's foreign policy. After all, one important motivation behind the Brexit quest is London's intention to reinforce and highlight British influence in a challenging global economic and political landscape. So how the UK recalibrates its relations with international partners after Brexit will no doubt be in the global spotlight.

As a country that has always valued its cooperation with the UK, China has repeatedly said it hopes the Brexit process will be a smooth one and that it hopes to forge even closer ties with the UK in the post-Brexit era.

The two countries are now in a process of building a "golden decade" for their relations. Stable bilateral cooperation in trade and other areas will help inject new vitality into the UK's interactions with other countries.

Looking at relations from a long-term perspective, it is clear that healthy ties are in the best interests of both countries, and that they have a bright future if the two countries continue to build on the good momentum that they attained in their bilateral interaction.