German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, during his visit to Beijing, urged Chinese companies to increase investments in the German economy. Xi Jinping welcomed Merz's intention to deepen ties.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, during his first visit to China as head of the German government on Wednesday, February 25, called on Chinese companies to increase investments in Germany while simultaneously demanding that Beijing reduce market distortions. Merz, who is accompanied by a large delegation of businessmen, informed Chinese President Xi Jinping that he intends to deepen economic ties with China, Germany's largest trading partner last year.
"There are challenges that we should discuss today, but the framework within which we are working is exceptionally favorable, and we have cooperated very well over the past decades," he noted.
Xi, seeking to position China as a reliable partner in an increasingly unpredictable world, responded positively to Merz's words. "The more turbulent and interdependent the world becomes, the more China and Germany need to strengthen strategic communication and enhance strategic mutual trust," he stated.
Berlin's Concerns
Earlier, in a meeting with Premier of the State Council of China Li Qiang, Merz stated that Germany has "quite specific questions regarding cooperation," which Berlin wants to "improve and make fairer." Germany has long been concerned about the undervalued yuan, market-distorting subsidies, and the excess capacities of Chinese exporters, which have caused the trade imbalance with Germany to steadily grow.
Xi Jinping told Merz that China and Germany should be "reliable partners supporting each other" and "defenders of free trade." China supports Europe's autonomy, Xi added, expressing hope that Europe will act with China in the same direction and uphold the strategic partnership.
Friedrich Merz called for the resumption of intergovernmental consultations with Chinese officials. "I know that my predecessors regularly visited China," Merz said during his meeting with Xi, adding that he wants to continue this tradition. "We should also resume the German-Chinese intergovernmental consultations that were interrupted by the change of government in Berlin and the pandemic," he emphasized. Xi noted that Merz attaches great importance to relations with China.
War in Ukraine
During the meeting in Beijing, Merz and Xi also discussed the war in Ukraine. Xi Jinping called for equal participation of the parties in resolving the Ukrainian conflict. "The key is to seek solutions through dialogue and negotiations," said the Chinese leader.
Kyiv's allies in the West often criticize Beijing for continuing to cooperate with Russia, purchasing raw materials from it, and supplying technologies that allow Moscow to continue its war against Ukraine.
