German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who came under fire for a trip to Beijing this week, said on Saturday that he and Chinese President Xi Jinping’s joint statement opposing the use of nuclear weapons in Ukraine was reason enough for the visit. Scholz’s comments came a day after he visited the world’s second-largest economy with German corporate CEOs, the first by a G7 leader since the COVID-19 pandemic. “Because the Chinese government, the president and I were able to declare that nuclear weapons should not be used in this war, that alone made the whole trip worthwhile,” Scholz said during a Social Democratic party event. of. Xi, who secured a third leadership term two weeks ago, agreed that both leaders “jointly oppose the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons” on Ukraine, but refrained from criticizing Russia or calling on Moscow to withdraws its troops. Scholz, who has been criticized for appearing to pursue a strategy that overexposes Germany’s economy to China, its most important trading partner, said diversification was key to limiting the potential fallout should the relationship deteriorate. “We have a clear plan and we’re following it. And that means diversification for all the countries we trade with, especially, of course, for a country that’s so big and has such a large share of the world economy,” Scholz said. “We will continue economic exchanges with China … But it is also clear, we will position ourselves to be able to deal with a situation at any time where there are difficulties – whether it is 10 years from now or 30 years.” SCHOLZ TO GERMAN MANAGERS: “DIFFERENTIATE NOW” During his trip, Scholz told business leaders, including the CEOs of Deutsche Bank, Volkswagen, BASF, Siemens, BMW, Merck and BioNTech, not to put diversification on the backburner, he said source of agency. In the closed-door session, he said it would take about 10-15 years to completely remove the risk. The story continues A separate government source said the impression was that the message had sunk in and that companies were diversifying while developing ties with China. This is particularly important for German carmakers operating in China, the world’s top market, including Volkswagen, which has repeatedly come under fire for its factory in the Xinjiang region amid reports of human rights abuses there. Battery materials, which are needed for packs that power electric vehicles, are also in focus. German automakers depend on China for lithium, nickel and cobalt, while Europe has launched programs to build its own supply, but it’s not there yet. Germany’s business relationship with China has come under closer scrutiny since Russia invaded Ukraine in February, ending a decade-long energy relationship with Moscow and prompting many companies to abandon local operations. This has fueled concerns about the potential consequences for Germany’s economy if China invades Taiwan. “Start now, don’t put it on the back burner. Do it now,” Scholz said at a party event in comments to business leaders about diversification. (Reporting by Andreas Rinke; Additional reporting by Christoph Steitz; Editing by Jason Neely)
