Chancellor Olaf Scholz (64, SPD) has arrived in Beijing for his first visit as German head of government. His plane landed at the airport in the Chinese capital on Friday morning local time.
After his arrival, a meeting with head of state and party leader Xi Jinping (69) is on the agenda. Scholz is the first Western head of government to meet Xi Jinping after his re-election as party leader nearly two weeks ago.
But when the two heads of government meet, the strict corona rules create an unusual situation. Xi Jinping refuses to shake Scholz’s hand. There is also no fisting, instead the two politicians meet at a distance.
Meetings planned with various representatives
Due to ongoing strict corona restrictions in China, Scholz’s visit lasts just 11 hours, making it shorter than any other chancellor’s trip to the world’s most populous country. Since the start of the pandemic almost three years ago, the Chancellor has been the first head of government from the group of major industrialized countries (G-7) to visit China again. He will also meet Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang, who will step down in March.
The chancellor is joined by a dozen top executives, including the CEOs of Volkswagen, BMW, BASF, Bayer and Deutsche Bank. Scholz will also meet local business representatives in Beijing. The timing of the trip so soon after the party congress where Xi Jinping further expanded his power is disputed. Chinese dissidents and the World Uyghur Congress had even called for it to be cancelled.
Shortly before his departure, Scholz had announced a new course towards China in the “Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung”. “Obviously, if China changes, the way we interact with China must also change.” Scholz also wants to address “difficult issues” such as human rights issues and dealing with minorities in his talks in Beijing. Scholz expressed concern about the situation around Taiwan and indirectly warned China of an invasion. (SDA)