Race against China’s tech dominance
The UK’s ambassador to Washington, Lord Peter Mandelson, has warned that a new transatlantic technology partnership is vital to prevent China overtaking the West in fields such as artificial intelligence, quantum computing and biotechnology.
Speaking at Ditchley Park in Oxfordshire, Mandelson likened the proposed pact to Cold War-era agreements that bound Britain closely to the United States on defence and nuclear cooperation.
He argued that only Washington had the resources and determination to rival Beijing in the race for technological supremacy.
“China is the most formidable modern competitor the West has ever faced,” he said, urging Britain and America to combine “formidable assets” to maintain leadership in critical industries.
Agreement expected during Trump visit
London hopes to sign a memorandum of understanding with Washington later this month, during President Donald Trump’s state visit to the UK. Officials suggested the agreement would build partnerships across advanced sectors including AI, defence innovation, civil nuclear energy and quantum research.
Mandelson, who was appointed ambassador last December by Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, said the pact should rank alongside the 1958 Mutual Defence Agreement negotiated in response to the Soviet Union’s Sputnik launch. “The choice before us is stark and urgent,” he told the audience. “The Atlantic alliance must evolve to meet the greatest challenge of our age: keeping ahead in the global technology race.”
Pressure on Britain’s China policy
The proposed partnership raises questions about Britain’s stance towards Beijing. Earlier this year the UK signed a trade deal with Trump cutting tariffs on cars and steel in return for limiting Chinese involvement in strategic supply chains. US officials have also expressed concern over whether a Chinese turbine maker should be allowed to provide equipment for North Sea wind farms.
Mandelson gave no details on whether the technology pact would carry similar conditions but emphasised the need for alignment with Washington in sensitive sectors such as telecommunications and autonomous vehicles.
Regulatory crossroads post-Brexit
He also urged Britain to adopt a more flexible US-style approach to technology regulation, warning against the “excessive rules” being developed in Brussels under the EU’s data and AI frameworks. Post-Brexit freedoms, he argued, gave the UK the chance to position itself as a more innovative partner for America.
While Brexit had left the country squeezed between the regulatory powers of the US, EU and China, Mandelson said it had also created new geopolitical options. “Brexit has freed us to pursue closer US ties,” he claimed.
A diplomatic balancing act
Although appointed to strengthen ties with Trump, Mandelson stressed Britain could be “respectful without being sycophantic”. He praised the president’s interventions in Ukraine and other conflicts, while acknowledging his unpredictable style.
Trump, he concluded, was not the cause of global upheaval but a symptom of it – a disruptive figure who, in Mandelson’s words, had issued “a deafening wake-up call to the international old guard”.
