German Chancellor Olaf Scholz met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing this Friday. This is said to be the first visit by a leader of the Group of Seven (G7) nations to China in three years.
With an aim to boost economic ties, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz arrived in Beijing with a high-level business delegation.
Discussion on the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war with a focus on nuclear weaponry took centre stage in this crucial meeting. Both the leaders condemned the usage of atomic weapons in Ukraine with the German Chancellor warning that Russia risked “crossing a line” in the global community by resorting to nuclear force.
In his first visit by a G7 leader to China since the Covid-19 pandemic, Scholz emphasized that China can be a major influencing factor in order to end Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Justifying the visit, he reiterated that China’s opposition to nuclear weapons in Ukraine is a significant reason for this visit.
Taking to Twitter, Chancellor Scholz said, ‘Putin’s war calls into question the global peace order. I asked President Xi to exert his influence on Russia. We agree that nuclear threats are extremely dangerous.’
Chancellor Scholz also held high-level meetings with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang later in the afternoon in which he called for fair trade between the two countries.
China is Germany’s largest trade partner and the nation’s economies are deeply interdependent. China is said to be one of the important markets for German exports which include machinery to vehicles, especially those belonging to global brands like Volkswagen, BMW and Mercedes-Benz.
Amidst growing concerns about China’s human rights record and maritime advances in the South China Sea, this visit by the German Chancellor has come under extreme scrutiny with many in Europe saying that it signals a lack of a unified voice within the bloc on how to deal with Beijing.
