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China policy divides Germany’s biggest party ahead of election
- A Christian Democratic Union manifesto describes China as posing ‘the greatest foreign and security policy challenge today’
- In contrast, the party’s candidate to be next chancellor questions the logic of criticising China on human rights
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Germany’s biggest party remains divided on how to tackle China ahead of September’s crunch election, with a manifesto unveiled by the Christian Democratic Union on Monday clashing with comments made by the party’s candidate to be the next chancellor, Armin Laschet.
The manifesto described China as posing “the greatest foreign and security policy challenge today”.
It called for a “resolute and powerful” response to Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road Initiative, adding that “China has the will and increasingly also the claim to power to shape and change the international order according to its own ideas – and is doing this with all its resources. China is influencing others by investing in technology and infrastructure”.
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It also called for Germany to play a guiding role in ensuring that “human rights are universal, indivisible and inalienable”, and to “oppose attempts by authoritarian states to weaken this consensus”.
In contrast, in an interview with the Financial Times published on the same day, Laschet questioned the logic of criticising China on human rights and suggested he would maintain the status quo, as Germany’s relationship with China is guided by strong commercial ties.
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