German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier and his Chinese
counterpart Yang Jiechi held bilateral talks in Berlin on
Tuesday, a signal that bilateral ties are moving back in track
after Chancellor Angela Merkel's meeting with the Dalai Lama last
September severely impaired the relations.
The Sino-German ties fell into difficulties following Merkel's
meeting with the Dalai Lama, whom China viewed as a separatist and
political exile engaging in activities aimed at splitting the
motherland and sabotaging national unity.
Speaking to the press before their talks, Steinmeier said he was
"very happy" as the meeting "is a signal that our relationship can
now return to normal."
Steinmeier reiterated the German government's one-China policy,
urging both sides to take an attitude of being "forward-looking" in
handling bilateral relations.
He also called on both sides to continue rebuilding mutual trust
and resuming exchange of high-level visits.
At Tuesday's meeting with Steinmeier, Yang said as long as China
and Germany adhere to the principle of mutual respect, equality and
mutual non-interference in each other's internal affairs, respect
and understand each other's major concerns, China-German ties would
see steady and healthy expansion.
Yang revealed that he and Steinmeier had exchanged views for
several times in order to resolve the problems in the bilateral
relations.
According to sources from the Chinese embassy in Germany, the
two ministers had exchanged letters to explore way out of the
difficulties in the bilateral ties.
According to Yang, the German side had made it clear that it
would continue to firmly adhere to one-China policy, recognize that
Taiwan and Tibet are parts of Chinese territory, firmly oppose
Taiwan's "referendum on UN membership" and would not support or
encourage any attempt to seek Tibet's independence.
"We appreciate that very much," Yang said.
According to Chinese diplomats, during the talks, Yang urged the
German side to honor its commitments, so as to avoid "unnecessary
disturbance" in developing bilateral ties.
Yang said the Chinese side is willing to join hands with the
German side to unveil a new page for the bilateral relations in the
new year.
During the talks, the ministers also discussed major
international issues including the Iran nuclear program.
The two ministers met on the sidelines of a six-nation foreign
ministers' meeting on the Iran nuclear issue held later Tuesday in
Berlin.
China has said it attaches great importance to the relations
with Germany and urged Berlin to take effective measures to mend
the Sino-German ties.
In dealing with the Sino-German ties, Germany should also take
into consideration the EU-China relations, the Chinese government
said.
"As a country that holds such a vital position and plays such a
key role, Germany, in dealing with the Sino-German ties, should not
only take the common interests of both countries into
consideration, but also think over the overall ties between China
and the EU," Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao told a news
briefing last month.
The German government has recently expressed the view that it
attaches great importance to developing relationship with
China.
At a press conference in Berlin last week, Chancellor Merkel
told reporters that Germany is "perfectly ready to continue the
sound relations with China on both economic and political
levels."
She also revealed a plan to visit China in October during the
Asia Europe Meeting (ASEM), and wished a success for the 2008 Olympic Games.
The two countries have to rely on each other when it comes to
international cooperation, said the German leader.
Merkel's meeting with the Dalai Lama last September drew
opposition from the Social Democratic Party (SPD), the governing
partner of her CDU/CSU bloc, and experts also expressed concerns
over the consequences of the meeting in terms of bilateral
ties.
Kurt Beck, chairman of the SPD, criticized Merkel for her
meeting with the Dalai Lama and called for "engagement" with China.
China is Germany's "strategic partner" that Germany can not afford
to lose, he said.
Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, also a SPD member,
accused Merkel of "shop window politics" in her dealings with China
over the so-called human rights issues.
Eberhard Sandschneider, director of the German Council on
Foreign Relations, said Merkel's meeting with the Dalai Lama was "a
major mistake" and the hurt it caused to the bilateral ties may
take some time to heal.
(Xinhua News Agency January 23, 2008)
