The China shock: Germany turns away from its biggest trading partner
China persecutes the Uyghurs and backs Russia's war in Ukraine. That's prompting Berlin to rethink its relations with Beijing. But this 'systemic rival' is also Germany's biggest trading partner.The "Xinjiang Police Files" document the scale and brutality with which the Chinese state oppresses its mainly Muslim Uyghur minority. The cache's publication comes at a time when many are thinking and speaking about values-based foreign policy.
German politicians are expressing shock. Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock called for a transparent investigation. Human rights, "for the protection of which Germany will remain committed globally," are a fundamental part of the international order, Germany's Foreign Office said in a statement.
The leaked files are lending additional urgency to a rethink of German policy toward China. Following the energy partnership with Russia, policymakers are now questioning relations with Beijing -- the second pillar of Germany's economic model in recent decades -- across nearly all party lines.
Finance Minister Christian Lindner cites a need to reduce Germany's economic dependence on China as quickly as possible.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/the-china-shock-germany-turns-away-from-its-biggest-trading-partner/ar-AAXNJFQ
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