But it is also inevitable as China, despite Donald Trump’s best efforts, is fast becoming the dominant superpower of the 21st century.

Sir Keir hopes that forging better relations with Beijing will help the UK tap into the Chinese economic behemoth as he tries to revive our own spluttering economy.

During Mrs May’s visit, the business delegation signed new deals with the Chinese worth £9billion.

The current incumbent of No 10 will be hoping for more of the same on his trip to the Far East.

But as tempting as the riches of Cathay are, political controversies loom large.

The proposed building of a Chinese mega-embassy in the heart of London has sparked a furious backlash amid fears it could be used as a major “spy hub”.

Sir Keir’s visit – during which he’ll meet President Xi Jinping in the Chinese capital as well as focusing on trade and business in Shanghai – was widely rumoured to be contingent on the embassy being given the green light.

Conservative Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp has accused the Prime Minister of a “craven kowtow” to the Chinese as he tries to persuade them to “bail him out of the economic mess he and Rachel Reeves have created.”

And he was unflinching in his condemnation of the Embassy, warning that Sir Keir is putting our national security at risk by acting as “Peking’s poodle” and acting as the “ultimate useful idiot”.

There are also significant security concerns about cosying up to China, not least following the furore over the collapsed “spy case” surrounding Christopher Cash, an ex-parliamentary researcher, and teacher Christopher Berry, accused of gathering sensitive UK information for China.

Another thorny diplomatic issue is the case of British national Jimmy Lai.

The Hong Kong-based pro-democracy campaigner and media tycoon has been found guilty of colluding with foreign forces under the city’s controversial national security law (NSL).

The 78-year-old, who has been in jail since December 2020, pleaded not guilty. He faces life in prison and is expected to be sentenced within days.

Taiwan is also a potential diplomatic boobytrap for the Prime Minister as China continues to menace the country it regards as its own.

Britain, the US and the rest of the West don’t agree.

Despite the government’s rhetoric some observers say Labour have been too soft in standing up to China on the matter.

Trump’s recent capture of Nicolas Maduro and subsequent claim America would now “run” Venezuela has set alarm bells ringing louder in the South China Sea.

One senior diplomatic figure said: “It’s not too much of a leap to expect China to think that if the USA can do that then why can’t we do the same in Taiwan.

“I don’t think the current UK government has been firm enough in getting the message across to Beijing that Taiwan is off limits – at all costs.”

And there is the tricky subject of the Uyghurs, a persecuted Muslim ethnic group in the North West of China.

China’s closeness with Russia is another major source of contention, particularly as the bloodshed in Ukraine continues.

Despite these issues, Labour has been laying the groundwork to move back into the Chinese orbit for a long time.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves, David Lammy – when foreign secretary, business and trade secretary Peter Kyle and Ed Miliband, energy secretary, have all gone east in the 18 months since Labour came to power.

Sir Keir, himself, has been dropping hints for weeks that he will be following suit.

First, in his Guildhall speech last month, Sir Keir noted how President Trump met President Xi in October while his French counterpart Emanuel Macron will have visited China three times since 2018.

German leaders have visited four times.

“Yet, during this same period, no British Prime Minister has visited China,” he bemoaned.

“And until I met President Xi last November [at the G20 summit in Brazil], there had been no leader-level meeting at all for six years.”

He did admit at the Guildhall that China “poses real national security threats to the United Kingdom”, but he said: “The absence of engagement is just staggering – a dereliction of duty.

“Because it means that, unlike our allies, we have not been standing up for our interests.”

And then he declared: “Well, no more.”

Then in his speech to the Parliamentary Labour Party this week, reacting to “Never Here Keir” criticism, the PM spoke of a “volatile world” and said: “You have to be on the pitch. You have to be in the room.”

Britain has been in the economic doldrums for some time whereas China now has the world’s second largest economy, behind America.

Under president Xi’s “Belt and Road Initiative” China has invested in 150 countries around the globe to boost its economic fortunes.

It has also slowly been buying up Britain, purchasing UK gilts as well as companies.

China’s international business empire includes multiple well-known and loved British brands which have fallen into the hands of individuals and state-owned outfits based in the Communist state.

Greene King, Three UK, Heathrow Airport, London’s Walkie Talkie building and Hinkley Point C Nuclear Plant to name just a few.

More than 200 British assets had been snapped up by Chinese and Hong-Kong based government agencies, worth more than a combined £135billion.

This figure has only grown, especially with the rapid rise of the state-owned China Investment Corporation (CIC), Beijing’s sovereign wealth fund.

All this leaves the UK vulnerable to pressure from Beijing, which has a record of using debt as leverage.

Sir Keir clearly believes Britain needs to be on China’s good side.

But that shouldn’t stop him quizzing Beijing.