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Traffic light interference in Baerbock's China policy - is the Foreign Minister now bowing out to Beijing?

2023-04-14T19:00:25.767Z


The traffic lights are bubbling again: this time the SPD is bothered by Annalena Baerbock's China policy. Is the Foreign Minister bowing to the pressure?


The traffic lights are bubbling again: this time the SPD is bothered by Annalena Baerbock's China policy.

Is the Foreign Minister bowing to the pressure?

Berlin/Beijing – New fuel for the traffic light coalition: The China policy of Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens) apparently annoys the SPD partners.

According to Spiegel

information, the conservative wing of the Social Democrats - also known as the Seeheimer Kreis - complains about the "symbolic politics" of the Greens.

According to this, 93 members of the Bundestag demand in a position paper that “there should be no one-dimensional German foreign and economic policy towards China”.

Both the Foreign Minister and her party colleague Robert Habeck are to be criticized on a total of five pages.

Baerbock and the Federal Minister of Economics would work their way "from individual case to individual case", said the SPD MP Esra-Leon Limbacher to the

mirror

.

The people of Seeheim are concerned about the economy.

At 250 billion euros per year, the German-Chinese trade volume is more than four times as large as the German-Russian trade before the start of the Ukraine war.

"An abrupt end to trade relations with China would be an economic disaster," which is why, according to the paper, "the result should not be an 'anti-China' strategy."

+

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock at a joint press conference with Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing.

© Suo Takekuma/AFP

Baerbock in China: SPD calls for more dialogue instead of foreclosure

On Thursday (April 13), Baerbock reiterated earlier statements that Beijing should not only be seen as a partner in overcoming global crises and as an economic competitor, but "increasingly also as a systemic rival".

"China has changed and that's why our China strategy must also react to it," said Baerbock in the

ARD

Tagesthemen.

A view shared even by the conservative wing of the Social Democrats.

In fact, the Chinese have become "competitors and rivals".

Nevertheless, it should not be forgotten that China is the second largest economy in the world.

As the

Spiegel

report says, the authors of the position paper praise Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD), who always maintains a dialogue with Beijing.

In any case, isolation should not be “a maxim” of Scholz's “turning point”.

In concrete terms, this means that if Chinese companies are allowed to invest in Germany, this must also apply to German companies in the People's Republic.

A stronger foreign policy dialogue is needed to secure future cooperation.

The history of the People's Republic of China from 1949 to the present

The history of the People's Republic of China from 1949 to the present

Baerbock denounces human rights situation – China does not want a “teacher from the West”

Baerbock began her visit to China on Thursday in the port city of Tianjin.

In the city southeast of the capital Beijing, she attended classes at a partner school and toured a German company that produces wind turbines.

The central political talks are scheduled for Friday in Beijing.

In addition to German-Chinese relations, the focus should also be on the human rights situation in China and the containment of the climate crisis and the Ukraine war.

Even before leaving for China, Baerbock had emphasized the goal of exploring opportunities for future cooperation with Beijing and reducing the dangers of one-sided dependency.

The direction in which everything will develop "also depends on which path China chooses," she said.

According to Foreign Minister Qin Gang, however, they do not want to be lectured on the subject of human rights: "What China needs least is a teacher from the West."

Each state has its own circumstances and cultural and historical background.

When it comes to human rights, there are “no uniform standards in the world.” However, Baerbock countered with her counterpart that there are “common standards” for human rights in the world – and reminded him of the UN Charter and the UN Human Rights Convention.

(

nak/dpa

)

List of rubrics: © Suo Takekuma/AFP

Source: merkur

All news articles on 2023-04-14

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