Xi to Scholz: China opposes nuclear force, in message to Putin

Mr Xi’s comments send a clear message to Mr Putin that nuclear threats are a red line for China. PHOTO: AFP

BEIJING – Chinese President Xi Jinping told German Chancellor Olaf Scholz he opposes the use of nuclear force in Europe, in his most direct remarks yet on the need to keep Russia’s war in Ukraine from escalating.

During the two leaders’ first in-person talks on Friday in Beijing, Mr Xi called on the international community to “reject the threat of nuclear weapons” and advocate against a nuclear war to prevent a “crisis on the Eurasian continent”, according to the official Xinhua news agency.

He also spoke of the joint need to ensure the stability of food and energy supply chains, which have both been disrupted by Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.

Kremlin officials, including former president Dmitry Medvedev, have warned in recent months about the possible use of tactical nuclear weapons in Ukraine, as Moscow’s faltering war enters its tenth month.

Mr Xi’s comments send a clear message to Mr Putin that nuclear threats are a red line for China, giving Beijing some common ground with Brussels on a conflict that has strained ties with the bloc.

Mr Xi’s declaration of a “no limits” friendship with Mr Putin before the invasion had prompted Europe to reexamine the security risks of expanding ties with Beijing.

Mr Josef Gregory Mahoney, a professor of politics at the East China Normal University in Shanghai, said Mr Xi’s comments would please those in Europe who are hoping China would use its position as a “friend of Russia” to deter Moscow against nuclear threats.

“Xi’s remarks are unambiguous here, against both the use and threats of use of nuclear weapons,” he said. “That will be interpreted by some as a very important message.”

Significance of Scholz

Mr Scholz is the first major European leader to visit China in more than two years, as Mr Xi returns to in-person diplomacy after his long spell of self-imposed Covid-19 isolation stifled such exchanges.

The German leader, who is joined on the one-day trip by top executives from BASF, Volkswagen, Deutsche Bank and BioNTech, is also the first from the bloc to meet Mr Xi after he clinched a precedent-defying third term in office in October.

The German leader said his trip came at a “time of great tension”, as Russia’s war in Ukraine challenged the rules-based order, and stressed the importance of face-to-face dialogue.

“We can now talk concretely and directly with each other to respond to the challenges the world is facing and the bilateral relations between Europe and China,” he said in a statement.

“Destroying political trust is easy, but rebuilding it is difficult, so it requires both sides to take care of it,” Mr Xi told Mr Scholz, according to Xinhua, adding that China and Germany should work together for peace.

Mr Scholz also met with Premier Li Keqiang, China’s No. 2 official who oversees the nation’s economic policy, on Friday afternoon.

Mr Xi has engaged in a flurry of diplomacy this week, hosting top foreign leaders from Vietnam, Pakistan and Tanzania, as he begins a third term focused on increasing China’s global influence.

He did not leave China for two years after Covid-19 emerged, a period that saw Beijing’s ties with the West sour over Mr Xi’s crackdown on Hong Kong, treatment of Muslims in Xinjiang and military pressure on Taiwan.

Later in November, Mr Xi is expected to expand that outreach campaign at major summits in Thailand and Indonesia, where he may sit down with United States President Joe Biden for the first time since Mr Biden took power. That meeting could ease hostilities between the world’s two largest economies, which have reached a new low during the pandemic.

Still, while Mr Xi appeared to have eased his own virus restrictions, meeting dignitaries in person and appearing unmasked in public, China remains in the grip of his zero-Covid policy that has weighed on the Chinese economy.

The German delegation had to take two RT-PCR tests before arriving in Beijing and another on arrival. Workers wearing hazmat suits were seen rolling out a red carpet for Mr Scholz’s delegation.

Walking a fine line

Mr Xi’s efforts to solidify ties with Germany this week are part of a broader push to prevent relations with the European Union from further deteriorating.

In 2021, the EU halted an investment agreement with China after both sides traded sanctions over Xinjiang, where the US has accused Beijing of genocide. China denies such allegations.

For its part, Berlin is working to hone a new national strategy on China that aims to weaken reliance, diversify supply chains and enhance security, while reinforcing business ties.

That leaves Mr Scholz walking a fine line between pushing trade ties in Beijing, while voicing concerns on sensitive allegations of human rights violations by China.

China will be looking to reassure foreign business leaders that it is open for investment and trade, despite its zero-Covid policy that has effectively closed the nation’s borders for nearly three years.

Mr Jens Hildebrandt, executive director of the German Chamber of Commerce in North China, told Bloomberg TV that clarity on Mr Xi’s zero-Covid policy was the “biggest concern” of the European nation’s businesses.

“We need predictability and stability,” he said. BLOOMBERG

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