“Asserting influence on Russia”

The Chancellor described China as a “big country”. However, Scholz warned the People’s Republic of military intervention in Taiwan. Any changes to the status quo should only be made “peacefully and by mutual consent,” said the Chancellor. “China has a special responsibility there.” Scholz was reacting to repeated threats from China that he wanted to take the island’s democratic republic militarily if the Taiwanese were to resist peaceful “unification”.

For Scholz, the first visit to China was a tightrope walk. The fact that he met Xi in Beijing so shortly after the big congress of the Communist Party, at which Xi further cemented his power, had caused criticism beforehand. Scholz’s environment had spoken of an “exploratory trip” before departure. It’s about establishing personal contact with China’s head of state. Until then, Xi and Scholz had only spoken to each other on the phone and video.

In Beijing, however, Scholz never tired of emphasizing that the trip was the right one. “It’s good and right that I’m in China,” he said at the press conference with Li that afternoon. The Chinese Prime Minister had previously congratulated Scholz “on behalf of the Chinese government” on his trip to China.

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In his opening statement, head of state and party leader Xi Jinping recalled his trip to Germany – and that he met Scholz in Hamburg in 2017 and was “welcomed very warmly” at the time. According to the state news agency Xinhua, Xi was convinced that Scholz’s visit would lead to the “pragmatic cooperation” between Germany and China being deepened in all areas.

But the trip also made it clear how much more controlled things are in China compared to the last visit by a German head of government three years ago. Until the end, it was not clear whether questions would be allowed at the press conference with the Chinese prime minister and Scholz.

In the end, the Chinese side presented the German guests with a fait accompli. “Due to time constraints,” no questions were allowed, a state official announced a few minutes before the start. Scholz was also not allowed to take any questions. To blame the relationship between the new federal government and China alone would be short-sighted.

Press freedom has been increasingly curtailed in the years since former Chancellor Angela Merkel’s visit in 2019, when questions were still allowed. But it is another signal that China is less and less willing to make concessions to its much-vaunted partner Berlin.

The fact that German-Chinese relations have cooled off somewhat is also reflected in economic relations: the signing of contracts for deals worth billions, as was customary in the past, was not celebrated. The business delegation was isolated for most of the day, and there was not even an opportunity to take photos.

According to Handelsblatt information, when Chinese and German companies met for dinner with Scholz and Prime Minister Li in the evening, the Chinese business delegation consisted mainly of state-owned companies. The CEOs of the financial groups ICBC, Bank of China, CITIC, China Chengtong, the energy companies State Grid and State Power, the food group COFCO, as well as the rail vehicle manufacturer CRRC and the conglomerate China General Technology were represented.

>> Read here: President of the EU Chamber of Commerce in China warns – “The mood is not good”

The co-founder of the private e-car battery manufacturer Gotion, the head of the engineering service provider Shanghai Supezet, and a representative of the management of the Geely car group also attended the meetings. It is also striking that the surveillance specialists Sensetime and Nutech were part of the Chinese delegation.

Scholz’ conclusion after the trip

At least the Chancellor was able to announce a success in Beijing. He spoke with both Xi and Li about vaccines, among other things. “This also includes approval of the Biontech vaccine for expatriates in China,” said Scholz. This is a major breakthrough for the German pharmaceutical company and a relief for foreign nationals living in China who previously only had access to the less effective Chinese vaccine.

Both sides also discussed the prospect of broader approval in China. “In this way we would make a joint contribution to combating the pandemic,” declared the Chancellor. Scholz was able to announce another, small success in cooperation in the fight against climate change. China and Germany have agreed to set up a climate and transformation dialogue.

However, Chinese Prime Minister Li also praised the economic relations: “There is still great potential for our cooperation.” China and Germany would send a common signal in a difficult world situation: “We defend free trade,” said Li. Scholz was more cautious. The federal government supports it when German companies secure their raw material supplies more broadly, explained Scholz. In his conclusion at the end of the trip, he warned that there must be a “level playing field” for German companies in China. Everything that Chinese companies are allowed in Germany must also be allowed for German companies in China.

.>> Read here: “China is facing a phase of weakness,” says top economist Kenneth Rogoff

In Beijing, Scholz also addressed numerous topics that China does not like to see discussed in public. In addition to Taiwan, the Chancellor also mentioned the situation in western China’s Xinjiang Province. For years, massive human rights violations against the Chinese Uyghur minority living there have been proven in China.

The Chancellor’s trip was not only difficult because of the unusually strong criticism beforehand. The strict corona restrictions also made visiting the Chinese capital more difficult. All participants in the delegation had to undergo several corona tests, both before and after the trip. Anyone who met members of the delegation must then be quarantined in government accommodation for ten days.

In the evening, Scholz flew back to Berlin after only eleven hours in Beijing. What remains is the feeling of an increasingly difficult relationship in which little is the same as it was three years ago.

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