Xi Jinping

China provided instructions to the British government ahead of President Xi Jinping‘s state visit to London Oct. 20-23, advising leaders to refrain from raising the issue of human rights.

China’s ambassador to Britain, Liu Xiaoming, pointed out that good relations hang in the balance, and that Xi’s visit is expected to “herald a golden era for the relationship,” The Guardian reported.

“We don’t shy away from talking about human rights. What we are against is to use human rights to interfere with other countries’ internal affairs and to try to impose your own system on to others,” Liu said at a press conference Thursday. The ambassador said Xi would feel offended if human rights were raised as a topic of discussion.

Liu’s remarks come after three years of efforts at Downing Street to improve relations with Beijing. In 2012, relations hit a new low when…