"At the invitation of the member of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, the UK foreign secretary will pay an official visit to China on August 30," Wang told a briefing.
The spokesman also noted that China and the UK as permanent members of the United Nations Security Council have a "common responsibility to promote peace, stability and development throughout the world."
"During the UK foreign secretary's visit to China, the sides will hold in-depth discussions on China-UK relations, as well as international and regional issues of common interest," Wang clarified.
In June, an American newspaper reported that the top UK diplomat might visit China for the first time in over five years. One of the senior officials later said that the UK Foreign Ministry was considering holding a meeting at the end of July. While Cleverley personally confirmed the plans, he later postponed his trip to Beijing. The delay reportedly happened due to the resignation of then-Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang. On July 25, Wang Yi succeeded Qin as the top Chinese diplomat.
Moreover, the top UK diplomat is expected to visit the Philippines to meet with the country's top officials and discuss strengthening partnership between the two nations, the UK government stated.
"Foreign Secretary James Cleverly will visit the Philippines to discuss the new UK-Philippines Enhanced Partnership," the government said in a statement published on Monday, without specifying a date for the visit.
Cleverly will travel to Manila to meet with the Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos and Foreign Minister Enrique Manalo. The top UK diplomat is also expected to visit the country's coast guard where he will discuss cooperation on maritime safety, environmental protection and countering terrorism.
"I'm delighted to visit the Philippines for the first time, a place which shares common values and interests with the UK," the government quoted Cleverly as saying.
The UK-Philippines enhanced partnership was launched in 2021. It provides for strengthening ties in key areas such as climate and environment, trade, maritime security and foreign policy. During Cleverly's visit to Manila, the countries are expected to sign a statement of intent on enhancing bilateral relations.