Chinese President Xi Jinping held talks with visiting German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on the afternoon of October 30. The Chinese side stressed wider cooperation and policy consistency, while the German side said the trade deficit with China should be handled through dialogue.
According to the website of China's foreign ministry, Xi held talks with Steinmeier at the Great Hall of the People on the afternoon of October 30. Beforehand, Xi and his wife held a welcome ceremony outside the hall's East Gate, with a guard of honor, both national anthems and a 21-gun salute at Tiananmen Square. A welcome banquet followed in the evening, attended by Foreign Minister Wang Yi.
광고 문의 · 300×250The ministry said Xi recalled more than five decades of diplomatic ties and proposed a new cooperation model based on equality, mutual benefit and strategic stability. He said the world's second and third largest economies share major responsibility for China-EU relations and global growth. He named artificial intelligence, green and low-carbon development, services trade and the digital economy as areas of cooperation, and suggested preparing for the 55th anniversary of ties next year.
The message from Beijing
The ministry said Xi told his guest that China keeps a consistent policy toward Germany, supports German unity and development, and welcomes a bigger German role in Europe and the world. He asked Germany to approach China in a pragmatic and friendly way and welcomed more German business in China. On the EU, he said cooperation and consensus should outweigh competition and that differences can be resolved through equal dialogue.
Xi also briefed Steinmeier on the recent fifth plenary session of the 20th Communist Party Central Committee and said the party is ready to share governance experience with major German parties. Our seed information mentioned a Huanqiu Shibao (Global Times) editorial urging Germany to keep its policy consistent, but we could not verify the text and do not quote it. Views from Chinese state media should be read separately from official readouts.
Germany's position and the sticking points
Per the Chinese readout, Steinmeier said he had visited China eight times in 25 years, praised its development and said Germany firmly upholds the one-China policy. He proposed closer cooperation in trade, technology, AI and environmental protection, backed the UN Charter, international law, free trade and WTO rules, and opposed protectionism and trade wars.
The Korea Times account of the German side stresses different points. It reported that Steinmeier urged Xi to help reduce Germany's trade deficit with China, almost 90 billion euros (about 100 billion dollars) last year, and called for trade that brings sustainable benefits to both sides. He cited a recent deal limiting hybrid-car exports to the EU as proof that hard issues can be solved and said the rules-based order is under pressure. The visit runs from October 27 to 31 and covers Beijing and Anhui province; China's foreign ministry spokesperson called it the first visit by a German president in eight years. We could not confirm that any agreements were signed.
