After intensive talks with senior Chinese officials in Beijing, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul traveled to the high-tech hub of Guangzhou, South China’s Guangdong Province on Tuesday, according to media reports, thereby completing what a Chinese expert described as a “comprehensive and in-depth diplomatic visit” to China.
On Tuesday, in one of the posts the German Foreign Office released on X, it talked about the minister’s current visit to China, expressing gratitude for the “intensive, open and constructive talks.”
Later in another post, the office talked about Wadephul’s meetings in Beijing, saying they have shown that “constructive dialogue is crucial, especially on issues where we have different perspectives. We want to continue this dialogue, with a focus on good results.”
According to the German Press Agency (DPA), Wadephul on Tuesday met company leaders in Guangzhou at the end of his visit to China, holding discussions with German tunnelling company Herrenknecht on conditions for doing business in China. He also visited a Chinese tech company WeRide, which provides technology for autonomous driving, to hear about the status of developments.
In response to an inquiry from the Global Times on Tuesday, WeRide stated that Germany’s foreign minister visited the company to learn about its latest technological developments. The minister’s delegation experienced the company’s autonomous Robobus and was briefed on its ongoing R&D progress.
The Global Times learnt that the delegation also viewed demonstrations of WeRide’s Robotaxi, Robosweeper and the Robovan autonomous logistics vehicle and its L2+ assisted-driving solutions. They also held discussions with the company’s representatives on its global expansion strategy and its growing international footprint.
Wadephul’s visit to Guangzhou, particularly the visit to high-tech companies, is conducive to his understanding of the development status of China’s high-tech sector, Jiang Feng, a research fellow at Shanghai International Studies University and president of the Shanghai Association of Regional and Country Studies, told the Global Times on Tuesday.
Reuters reported on September 16 that China moved into the top 10 of the United Nations’ annual ranking of most innovative countries for the first time, replacing Europe’s largest economy, Germany.
“Wadephul’s trip to Guangzhou should reinforce an idea that Germany should develop together with China, and promote Germany’s revitalization of its own competitiveness,” the expert added.
Wadephul’s visit comes amid a wave of European diplomacy in Beijing. Spain’s King Felipe VI paid a state visit from November 10 to 13, followed by French President Emmanuel Macron from December 3 to 5.
The South China Morning Post reported on Tuesday that Wadephul had warned that Europe must be “extremely cautious” about slapping tariffs on China, which “should only be considered as a last resort,” as it could prompt Beijing to take countermeasures that could turn into a “spiral.”
“In the face of China’s rising competitiveness, Germany and Europe currently simplistically label the issue they face as ‘overcapacity.’ If they stick to this label, Europe may resort to protectionist measures like imposing tariffs to restrict imports of Chinese products, thus falling into the predicament of trade barriers, which is extremely detrimental to Europe’s efforts to enhance its own innovation capability and global competitiveness,” Jiang said.
During his meeting with Wadephul on Monday, China’s Commerce Minister Wang Wentao stressed that China attaches great importance to Germany’s concerns on issues such as export controls and Nexperia, and has been gradually applying general licensing arrangements in areas including rare earths, according to a statement from the Ministry of Commerce.