German Foreign Minister Johann Wadeful has postponed a trip to China after Beijing confirmed only one meeting, a Foreign Office spokesman said.
“The Chinese side was ultimately only able to confirm the appointment with the Chinese foreign minister, and could not confirm any other additional appointments,” the spokesperson said.
The visit, originally scheduled for last week, would have marked the first by a German minister in the conservative-led government of Chancellor Friedrich Merz, which took office in May.
“There are a number of issues that we would like to discuss with the Chinese side, especially at this time,” the spokesperson said.
Although he did not specify which side canceled the visit, the speaker said Germany regretted the development.
Is Germany’s Taiwan stance behind the cancellation?
Despite departing on Sunday and planning to hold meetings on Monday and Tuesday, China had only confirmed one meeting with Foreign Minister Wang Yi.
Earlier on Friday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson had criticized Germany’s stance on Taiwan.
According to the representative, calling for maintaining the status quo without explicitly rejecting the island’s independence is tantamount to supporting “Taiwan independence activities.”
Wadeful has repeatedly criticized China’s efforts to unilaterally change the status quo in the region, and described Beijing’s Indo-Pacific policy as increasingly aggressive. However, it is unclear whether China’s decision to confirm only one meeting was directly linked to Germany’s stance.
China’s new export controls on rare-earth technology have also disrupted EU industries, causing some companies to halt production.
Tensions rose after the Netherlands seized Chinese-owned chip maker Nexperia, prompting Beijing to ban some exports and raising fears of a chip shortage in Europe.
Edited by: Louis Olofse