BEIJING, July 21: China’s top leaders warmly embraced British Prime Minister Tony Blair as a major world statesman on Monday, giving him a welcome break from the political fallout of the Iraq invasion back home.

Looking rested and relaxed, Mr Blair was greeted by a People’s Liberation Army honour guard, a 19-gun salute and a soulful rendition of “God Save the Queen” at the Great Hall of the People, overlooking Tiananmen Square.

His Chinese counterpart, Wen Jiabao, then led him up the red-carpeted stairs and into a series of meetings dominated by North Korea’s quest for nuclear weapons and Hong Kong’s controversial proposed anti-sedition law.

Iraq’s reconstruction, and tension between Pakistan and India, were also up for discussion.

“What’s interesting is the degree to which the Chinese leadership here now are very much trying to assist in resolving some of these most difficult questions,” the prime minister told reporters in his entourage.

Later in the day, Mr Blair met President Hu Jintao and, after switching into an eye-catching pink shirt and tie, retired senior leader Jiang Zemin.

He also pledged to “fully cooperate” with Lord Hutton’s inquiry into last week’s shock suicide death of former UN arms inspector David Kelly, and indicated he would testify if summoned to do so.

“I will do what the judge in charge of the inquiry wants me to,” he said.

Publicly the mood could not have been more positive, with Mr Wen crediting the British premier personally for putting Sino-British ties back on track after the messy rows prior to Hong Kong’s handover in 1997 — the year Mr Blair took office.

“Since you became the prime minister, China-UK relations have achieved much progress,” said Wen Jiabao, who was meeting Mr Blair in Beijing for the first time since an overhaul of China’s top leadership was completed in March.

“With this visit by you as the starting point, I’m very much ready to join hands to further expand our relations so that we can achieve even more rapid and greater development of our relations.” —AFP