German Chancellor receives Chinese PM with military honors

BERLIN, June 20 (DPA/EP) –

The German Chancellor, Olaf Scholz, received this Tuesday in Berlin with military honors the Chinese Prime Minister, Li Qiang, who is on an official visit to the European country to discuss bilateral relations.

Some twenty ministers are participating in the meeting of both governments under the slogan ‘Acting together sustainably’, which will focus on the fight against climate change and the consequent restructuring of the economy.

Likewise, it is likely that during the meeting trade relations and the Russian invasion of Ukraine will also be addressed, in which China, unlike Germany and its Western allies, has not openly condemned Russia and has chosen to adopt a mediation role. between Moscow and Kiev.

The German government regularly organizes government consultations with particularly close partners or countries that are of particular economic or strategic importance. Thus, in recent months he has met with the governments of Spain, the Netherlands, Japan and India.

In the case of relations with China, which have deteriorated significantly in recent years, the last meeting that involved the travel of delegations took place in 2018, since the consultations were held by videoconference during the coronavirus pandemic.

In fact, last week the German government presented its national security strategy for the first time in the face of increased tension in Europe and has positioned Russia as the “greatest threat to peace and security” of the Euro-Atlantic bloc as the war progresses. invasion of Ukraine, a document in which he stressed that China’s position at the regional level “contravenes the interests of the West”.