At the press conference after their meeting in Berlin, profound disagreement between the German and Chinese foreign ministers came to light. Whereas China’s Qin Gang tried to make balanced remarks, Germany’s Annalena Baerbock decided to provoke the Chinese, by stating with regard to her recent trip to China that “during my stay in Beijing, the winner of the Franco-German Human Rights Award was arrested on his way to the EU embassy.”
China’s Foreign Minister Qin Gang referred to China’s sovereignty and forbade “that the foreign side interferes in our internal affairs.” He also said China was concerned about Germany’s and the EU’s socalled “derisking” strategy viz China, which apparently contrasted with the Chinese strategy to promote dialogue and search for ways to avoid and solve conflicts. Qin pointed to EU President von der Leyen’s coining of the “de-risking” strategy toward China, warning that this could lead to a de-sinicization of the European continent, which would cut opportunities for European employment, investment, and stability.
Qin also warned that the real “risk” Europe faces comes from “a certain country” that is waging a “new cold war,” imposing unilateral sanctions, and exporting its own financial problems to others. Such a conflict would be devastating for Europe. He also noted that the unnamed nation had abused the monopoly status of its currency and transferred its domestic inflationary and fiscal crisis, with serious spillover effects.
