Trade, Ukraine and new world order are top concerns on German leader’s visit to China

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz (right) and Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Munich, Feb. 14 [AP Photo]

The first official trip to China by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz comes as his country’s manufacturers face increasing pressure from Chinese competitors and as U.S. President Donald Trump shakes up a post-World War II global order that Europe has long depended on.

Merz is set to arrive today (Wednesday) for a two-day visit, the latest in a parade of world leaders to visit Beijing ahead of a trip by Trump in about five weeks.

Besides Germany’s growing trade deficit with China, Merz is expected to raise Chinese backing for Russia’s position in the war in Ukraine, though no change from the Chinese side is foreseen.

China is seeking support from other nations to push back against Trump’s challenges to international rules and organizations, but Merz has signaled wariness about China’s view of a 21st century order. Success may be measured by finding small ways to cooperate despite differences on major issues.

“As the world’s second and third largest economies, sound China–Germany relations serve the interests of both sides and meet the expectations of the international community,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said yesterday.

She added that “the Ukraine crisis is not and should not become an issue between China and Europe.” China says it has “an objective and impartial position,” which puts it at odds with Germany and much of Europe.

German imports rise while exports to fall

Merz opens his trip with talks Wednesday with China’s Premier Li Qiang and top leader Xi Jinping, whose reduced international travel means foreign leaders must travel to Beijing if they want to meet him. On Thursday, the German chancellor plans to visit a Mercedes-Benz facility and travel to Hangzhou, a high-tech city that is home to e-commerce giant Alibaba and leading robot developer Unitree Robotics.

He is bringing a delegation of business leaders looking to expand sales. China has long been an important market for Germany, a major exporter of manufactured goods. But advances by Chinese companies in recent years have turned them into formidable competitors, notably in the automobile industry, where new electric vehicle makers are challenging Volkswagen and other leading brands.

Last year’s foreign trade figures underlined concern over the imbalance in economic ties. German imports from China rose 8.8% to 170.6 billion euros ($201 billion), helping Chinese manufacturers offset a decline in U.S. imports because of Trump’s tariffs. Meanwhile, German exports to China fell 9.7% to 81.3 billion euros.

The growing imbalance has stepped up longstanding German demands that China reduce its trade barriers and open its markets further to foreign competitors.

Germany should have no illusions about China

Merz’s visit follows French President Emmanuel Macron in December and the leaders of Ireland, South Korea, Canada, Finland and Britain last month.

In an address to the German parliament in January, Merz said Europe needs to “learn the language of power politics” to assert itself in a changing world and become stronger economically and militarily. The emerging world order also opens opportunities for Europe, he said, as democracies with open and growing markets “seek what we have to offer them, namely partnerships on the basis of mutual respect, trust and reliability.”

He also said recently that Germany should have no illusions about China, which he said “asserts the claim to define a new multilateral order according to its own rules.”

Shortly after this week’s China trip, Merz plans to make his second visit to Washington since taking office in May.

While some countries — notably Canada and the U.K. — seek to repair ties with China, Germany’s goal is to maintain a relationship that has become more complicated in recent years.

Germany still recognizes China as a vital economic partner but now also sees it as a competitor. The government, in what has become known as de-risking, has sought to reduce the country’s dependence on China as an export market and for strategic products such as rare earths, which are widely used in the automotive, tech and defense industries.

On a visit to Beijing in December, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul discussed his government’s concerns over Chinese government subsidies to targeted industries, the manufacturing overcapacity that has boosted exports, restrictions on the export of rare earths and the Russia-Ukraine war. KEN MORITSUGU & GEIR MOULSON, BEIJING, MDT/AP