China to Germany: How we will work with Moscow, Ukraine

CHINA – The Chinese government underlined that it would not provide weapons to Russia in support of Moscow’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine, now or in the future, following talks between the German and Chinese foreign ministers.

“We do not and will not supply weapons to parties in conflict,” Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang said after almost two hours of talks with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock.
He also said that dual-use goods, which can be used for civilian as well as military purposes, are controlled by law. The Chinese role in Ukraine is to promote reconciliation and advance peace negotiations, said Qin. “We will not continue to pour oil on the fire,” he declared, according to the official translation.

His comments came after Baerbock urged China to encourage Russian President Vladimir Putin more strongly to end the Kremlin’s war.
She said Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to Moscow had shown that no other country had more influence on Russia than China. “The decision on how it uses this influence directly affects Europe’s core interests,” Baerbock said.

Just as China had successfully engaged in peaceful reconciliation between Iran and Saudi Arabia, the hope is that China will encourage Russia to end its aggression in Ukraine and engage in peaceful conflict resolution, she said.

China, as a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, has a special responsibility, Baerbock said. She commended Beijing for signalling its commitment to finding a solution, referring to a 12-point position paper issued by China that was criticized in the West.

“But I have to say frankly that I wonder why the Chinese positioning so far does not include calling on the aggressor Russia to stop the war. We all know President Putin would have the opportunity to do that at any time,” Baerbock said. Later on Friday, China and Russia confirmed that Chinese Defence Minister Li Shangfu will travel to Russia on Sunday.
Talks with his Russian counterpart Sergei Shoigu are planned during the visit, which lasts until Tuesday, the Russian Defence Ministry announced on its Telegram channel.
“The parties will discuss the state and prospects of defence cooperation as well as current issues of global and regional security,” it said.

Qin and Baerbock also touched on the issue of Taiwan, as tensions rise in the region. China rejected any foreign interference in Taiwan, with Qin telling the media that Taiwan is part of China and “does not allow any intervention from outside.” Beijing insists that the self-ruled democracy is part of its territory, even though Taiwan has had an independent government since 1949.
China held a military exercise in the Taiwan Strait following a meeting between Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen and Speaker of the US House of Representatives Kevin McCarthy in California last week, as Beijing seeks to isolate Taiwan internationally.

If other states “truly respect” the One China principle, they should reject separatist activities in Taiwan, Qin said. The “original root of the problems” is the independence aspirations. China will “not give up an inch of territory,” he added. Baerbock expressed her concern about the tensions surrounding Taiwan and warned that any destabilization would have major consequences. She noted that 50% of global trade passes through the Taiwan Strait.

Military escalation around Taiwan would be a “horror scenario” for the entire world, Baerbock said, adding that the “shock wave of this economic crisis” would also hit China.
“Conflicts must only be resolved peacefully,” Baerbock noted. She reiterated Germany’s One China policy, according to which Beijing is recognized as the only legitimate government of China and Berlin does not maintain diplomatic relations with Taiwan.

Baerbock stressed, however, that a change of the status quo by force would not be acceptable. Her comments came after French President Emmanuel Macron triggered a storm by saying that Europe should not be drawn into the conflict around Taiwan, following his trip to Beijing last week. The US has been committed to Taiwan’s defence capability since 1979, which has mostly meant supplying arms.

After Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, there is growing concern that China could take similar action against Taiwan, which could escalate into a confrontation with the US.
Qin also said after the talks with Baerbock that China did not want to be lectured on human rights. “What China needs least is a teacher from the West,” he said. He rejected Baerbock’s criticism of the human rights situation in China, saying that every state had its own circumstances and cultural and historical background.

Baerbock however said that there are indeed “common standards” for human rights in the world, referring to the UN Charter and the UN Convention on Human Rights. The Charter contains “universal” human rights to which all UN members are bound, she said. Earlier, Baerbock had expressed concern that the space for civil society and human rights in China was being curtailed.
In response to accusations of persecution, especially of the Muslim Uighurs in the north-western region of Xinjiang, Qin said that this was not a human rights issue, but was about combatting radicalism and separatism. Foreign forces should stay out of the region, Qin said, in exchanges that came on the second of Baerbock’s three-day trip to China.