I believe this is a result of parliamentary language and defamation laws
I doubt it. British media can be sued, in Britain under British defamation laws, by foreigners too. That's why they're careful with rich white celebrities, even if they're foreigners. But less rich or famous (or white) foreigners (or their entire countries)...? Naah, not so much.
Another example is British newspapers which use "corruption" when writing about alleged corruption in African countries, but use "sleaze" or "controversies" when writing about alleged corruption in the UK.