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Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss battle to be U.K.'s next PM

Former finance minister Sunak seeks 'balanced' China ties; Thatcher fan Truss more hawkish

LONDON -- Britain's former Finance Minister Rishi Sunak will battle Foreign Secretary Liz Truss to become the country's next prime minister in the final phase of a bruising Conservative party leadership fight to succeed Boris Johnson.

https://asia.nikkei.com/Politics/U.K.-s-...n-minister

Truss, a favorite in the Conservative Party, moves to the foreign office from the trade department where she has completed a number of trade deals since Britain left the European Union. Anne-Marie Trevelyan moves to trade after being a climate minister.

Truss replaces Raab, who has faced calls to resign since he went on holiday in Crete as the Taliban advanced on the Afghan capital, Kabul. He was demoted to the Justice Ministry.

To soften the blow, Raab was also appointed deputy prime minister, a role he played in all but name when he stepped in to lead government when Johnson was fighting for his life in hospital with COVID last year.