Scholz’s scale reflects the importance of Germany’s industrial ties with China, the world’s second-largest economy, specifically in the automotive and production sectors. Mercedes Benz sold 758,863 cars in China last year, more than in any other country, according to corporate figures.
Scholz, who travels with several of Germany’s most sensible business leaders, gave the official welcome through Xi, who was recently re-elected head of the ruling Communist Party, at the Great Hall of the People in downtown Beijing.
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Xi noted that Scholz’s scale comes as the two countries mark more than 50 years of diplomatic relations dating back to the revival of economic exchanges, despite their Cold War rivalry, which remains a key component of dating to this day.
“At present, the external scenario is complex and changing,” Mr. Xi quoted state broadcaster CCTV as saying. “As influential powers, China and Germany work together in such times of change and chaos to make more contributions to world peace and development. “. “
On Ukraine, Xi “stressed that China supports Germany and the EU by playing a role in selling peace talks and structuring a balanced, effective and sustainable European security framework,” CCTV reported.
The foreign network will have to “call on all parties involved to exercise rationality and restraint, make direct contacts as soon as possible, and create situations for the resumption of negotiations (and) jointly oppose the use or risk of use of nuclear weapons,” Mr. Simpson said. . xi. .
Without offering evidence, Russian leader Vladimir Putin repeated Moscow’s unproven accusation that Ukraine is a false flag attack involving a grimy radioactive bomb seeking to frame Russia.
Ukraine strongly rejected the accusation and its Western allies dismissed it as “patently false. “Ukraine has argued that Russia could make the accusation as a pretext for its own plot to detonate a grimy bomb.
Scholz is the first leader of the Group of Seven major industrialized countries to meet with Xi since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, which was first detected in China in 2019, and the first European leader to escalate in China since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. which Germany strongly opposed.
The diplomatically sensitive comes as Germany and the European Union paint over their strategy toward an increasingly assertive and authoritarian Beijing.
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Beijing has provided diplomatic support to Moscow continuously calling for peace talks while refusing measures at the United Nations criticizing the Russian invasion. He also accused the U. S. of being a U. S. of being a problem. The U. S. and NATO government called for provoking the attack and harshly criticized the economic sanctions imposed on Russia.
In his opening remarks, Scholz referred to the shock that has created millions of refugees and disrupted global food and energy markets and said: “We meet at a time of wonderful tension,” according to German news firm DPA.
“In particular, I want to highlight the Russian war against Ukraine, which poses a lot of disruption to our rules-based global order,” he said, quoting Scholz.
Scholz also cited global hunger, climate change and the country’s upcoming debt as problems, DPA reported.
Scholz, who is based on a coalition of his Social Democratic Party, the Greens and the Liberal Democratic Party, was criticized for stopping in China so soon after Xi’s triumph at last month’s congress, at which he was appointed to a third five-year post. and filled the omnipotent Politburo Standing Committee with allies who help his vision of tighter control of society. and economics and a more confrontational technique to the West.
This also comes amid emerging tensions over Taiwan and follows a UN report that China’s human rights abuses against Uighurs and other ethnic groups in the Xinjiang region would possibly amount to crimes against humanity.
Scholz will be joined by a dozen smart top German business leaders, including the CEOs of Volkswagen, BMW, BASF, Bayer and Deutsche Bank, most of whom are doing business in China. Scholz will also meet with corporate representatives in Beijing.
This leads some German observers to question whether the country is too dependent on the Chinese market, as happened with Russia for energy supplies.
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After lunch, Scholz and his delegation were scheduled to meet with Premier Li Keqiang, who is theoretically pro-China’s economy.
In an article in the German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Scholz said he will travel to Beijing “precisely because the prestige quo is not an option in this situation. “
“It is transparent that if China changes, the way we deal with China will also have to change,” Scholz said, adding that “we will reduce unilateral dependencies in the spirit of smart diversification. “issues” such as the rights of ethnic minorities in Xinjiang.
Scholz’s messages will come under scrutiny, especially in the House where some have criticized him for normalizing China’s behavior. While his nearly year-long government marked a shift from Angela Merkel’s resolutely trade-oriented approach, internal discord over a primary investment via a Chinese shipping company in a container terminal in the very important German port of Hamburg continues.
While China still imposes strict restrictions on COVID-19, its delegation travels to an antivirus bubble, is undergoing testing, and may not stay in Beijing overnight. Only at 11 a. m. The team that brought him to Beijing flew to South Korea to wait for the stopover and avoid having to be quarantined.
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German officials say the goal is to investigate where China is headed and what cooperation bureaucracy is possible.
An official under pressure over China’s “special responsibility” as Russia’s best friend for ending the war in Ukraine and forcing Moscow to moderate its nuclear rhetoric; considerations on tensions in Taiwan and the wider region; Germany’s preference for a “level playing field” in economic relations; and Scholz’s existing prestige as G-7 president this year.