U.K.-China relations are heading in a very positive direction at the moment. Only last month, China hosted the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Mayor of London, both intent on increasing the solid content of the bilateral relationship through mutually beneficial commercial relations. And next month will see a full-scale head-of-government visit by the Prime Minister with a wide-ranging business delegation, for the same purpose.

Earlier this month, however, a slightly unusual element was introduced into the U.K.-China relationship. The U.K., as is well known, has recently introduced a degree of federalism, with devolved administrations in the three smaller constituent parts of the kingdom. So it seemed quite natural for the First Minister of Scotland Alex Salmond to visit China in pursuit of business deals concentrating specifically on marketing what Scotland has to offer.

As well as colorful traditional clothing, much of which is manufactured in China -- even the tartan trousers Mr Salmond wore to an official dinner were run up quickly by a Beijing tailor -- Scotland does have a few of its own regional specialities of special interest to China. Its coasts are closest to the North Sea oil and gas fields, making it the U.K.'s center for oil and gas exploration and extraction. And China is very much in the business of forming partnerships in the field of offshore energy, with a view to securing stable and diverse sources of energy for its growing domestic needs. Both CNOOC and Sinopec have recently invested heavily in Scottish offshore energy companies.

And Scotland has one real unique selling point which makes it one of China's essential import sources: despite many worthy attempts at matching quality from the U.S., Canada, Japan and others, there will never be anything quite like Scotch whisky. China's growing high-end consumer market requires the world's best products, increasingly regardless of expense, and Scotland's finest is the world's finest. Mr Salmond did not miss the opportunity presented by the recent opening of Johnnie Walker House in Beijing, named after the most popular Scotch whisky in China. (Not the best, though, trust me.) Between 2007 and 2012 sales of Scotch in China rose by 70 percent, forming an important part of the hugely burgeoning Scottish export trade with China.

But Mr Salmond sees himself as more than a regional administrator and trade promoter. He is what China would regard as a full-scale separatist. His party, the Scottish National Party (SNP), has a majority in the devolved parliament and so forms the provincial Scottish Government within the U.K., but he does not want to stop there. Mr Salmond and his party are committed to the pursuit of full independence for Scotland. David Cameron's central government -- and the opposition Labour Party -- are both firmly opposed to Scottish independence; but there will be no way that they can stop it happening if the Scottish people vote for independence in a referendum in September 2014. (I should perhaps mention that support for independence is running no higher than 25-30 percent among Scots, but there is still almost a year to go.)

Now, we all know that China sees these matters in a different light. The concept of the peaceful secession of one part of a sovereign state, and the establishment of a separate sovereign state, is something that China has never been able to accept. Mr Salmond was very careful not to emphasize this aspect of his policy when visiting China; his mission was entirely concerned with commercial and cultural relations, and he knows better than to try to get China involved in any way with the political issues surrounding independence. Chinese reporting of the visit was careful to emphasize that "the two sides had a friendly conversation on enhancing economic, cultural, non-governmental exchanges and cooperation between China's municipal or provincial administrations and the Scottish government." This made it very clear that China sees Mr Salmond as a regional, not a national, leader, and he cannot realistically have expected anything different. But China is nothing if not realistic, and if independence becomes a fait accompli, accepted by the London government, it will surely be accepted by China. After all, Scottish trade with China will offer the same opportunities whether Scotland is an independent country (it will remain part of the EU) or merely a region of the U.K.

Obviously China will take no view on this matter. As an Englishman who has chosen to live and work in the Scottish capital, I should probably take no view either, although I do think that Edinburgh could only benefit from the presence of a fully-equipped and active Chinese Embassy. And, if any wealthy Chinese would like advice on how to choose between quality Scotch whiskies, I should be delighted to offer my services.

The author is a columnist with China.org.cn. For more information please visit:

http://www.h5a3.com/opinion/timcollard.htm

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