On Sunday, the United Kingdom's Duke of Cambridge, Prince William, was due to begin a visit to China. His trip to Beijing, Shanghai and southwest Yunnan province, is the first visit to the Chinese mainland by a member of the British royal family in nearly three decades.

Second in line to the British throne after his father, Charles, Prince of Wales, William gained immense popularity with his marriage to Catherine Middleton in 2011. The young royal couple has since become a well-received part of British diplomacy, receiving warm welcomes during their visits to Australia and New Zealand in April and the United States in December.

For the United Kingdom, visits to a foreign country by members of the royal family mean that the country is high on its diplomatic agenda. Invited by the then Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping, the Queen Elizabeth II, her husband Prince Philip and a royal entourage of 50 visited China in 1986. Likewise, supported and designed by the British government, Prince William's visit can be seen as a signal of the UK government's strong desire to push for a better relationship with China.