China Urged to Shoulder Responsibility for Peace in Ukraine War During Sino-German Foreign Ministers' Phone Call
On Monday, May 19th, newly appointed German Foreign Minister Walter Furland held his first phone call with Chinese Foreign Minister since the new German government led by Merkel took office. The German Foreign Ministry clearly stated that China has a responsibility to maintain "global peace", and Russia's war against Ukraine touches on Europe's fundamental interests; Beijing warned Germany not to damage bilateral cooperation under the pretext of "decoupling".
Agence France-Presse reported that after the phone call between the Chinese and German foreign ministers, the German Foreign Ministry released a statement on the social platform X emphasizing: "Russia's war against Ukraine affects Europe's core interests. China bears responsibility for global peace."
A spokesperson for the German government, Wagner, revealed at a press conference on Monday that this was the first phone call between German Foreign Minister Walter Furland and Chinese Foreign Minister since the new government led by Merkel came into power. Although the main topic was "Sino-German relations", the Ukrainian issue was also explicitly included on the agenda.
Wagner pointed out that Walter Furland conveyed to the Chinese Foreign Minister the message that "Russia's war against Ukraine damages Europe's core interests and disrupts Europe's peace order".
According to Agence France-Presse, as an important economic and trade partner of Germany, China has always been a carefully handled object in German foreign policy. However, with the intensification of geopolitical tensions and the rise in economic competition between China and Europe, Germany had already begun to adopt a tougher stance toward China during the term of former Chancellor Scholz.
Although Merkel stated that China will remain an "important partner", he emphasized that Germany will continue to promote the "de-risking strategy" to reduce its "unilateral dependence" on China, aiming to reshape Sino-German economic and trade relations.
In response, China warned during the phone call with Walter Furland that this strategy might "damage normal cooperation between the two countries". He urged Germany to actively promote the improvement of Sino-European relations, seeking consensus on issues such as electric vehicles, and hoped to "properly resolve" this dispute as soon as possible. China also expressed that both sides should jointly "uphold free trade" and "jointly oppose unilateralism and protectionism".
According to Chinese sources, China also mentioned the recent tariff reduction agreement reached between China and the US regarding mutual import goods, indicating signs of easing in the US-China trade war.
Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1832593875518464/
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