Merkel targets China on human rights and trade but tempers with praise on climate

On the eve of EU special summit that has China as a top item of the agenda, German chancellor raises concerns to her parliament

Little progress has been made on EU-China investment treaty but Merkel is keen for movement, if not a political breakthrough, by year’s end

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German Chancellor Angela Merkel says Europe and China must work together on climate issues. Photo: AFP

Published: 10:30pm, 30 Sep 2020Updated: 2:20am, 1 Oct 2020

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has laid out a three-pronged approach to EU-China relations, praising Beijing for “ambitious” commitments to climate change while calling for fair trade and voicing concerns over Hong Kong and other “dreadful and often horrible” human rights issues.

Merkel made the remarks on Wednesday at the Bundestag, the German parliament, ahead of a two-day European Union special summit where all heads of government will gather to discuss China as a top item of the agenda, underlining Europe’s deepening sense of unease amid the US-China rivalry.

In a nuanced assessment, Merkel appeared to be the most positive on Chinese President Xi Jinping’s speech at the United Nations General Assembly, where he promised to achieve carbon neutrality by 2060 and to cap carbon dioxide emissions by 2030.

“Looking at the development challenges for China, these targets really are ambitious and they should provide an inspiration for us in Europe as well, to live up to our promises,” she said.

“I think it’s not in dispute when it comes to climate, we need to work with China – it is the largest emitter worldwide.”

Taking a swipe at the US, which quit the Paris climate agreement of 2015, Merkel said: “It’s extremely important for China to contribute to the efforts for climate protection. Unlike other emitters, China at least – which is very encouraging – is standing by the agreements it entered into.”