China has once again urged Europe to retain strategic autonomy and steer clear of the influence of “third parties”, issuing the call during German Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s first state visit to Beijing. In their first face-to-face talks since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic , Chinese President Xi Jinping told Scholz that Germany should not be influenced by “bloc confrontations” and “attempts to see everything through the prism of ideology”. Xi said he hoped Germany would have a “positive policy” towards China, and called on the European Union to retain “strategic autonomy” to achieve mutual benefits. “China always regards Europe as a comprehensive strategic partner, supports the European Union’s strategic autonomy, hopes to see a stable and prosperous Europe, and insists that China-Europe relations are not targeted at, subjugated to, or controlled by any third party,” Xi said, in an apparent reference to the United States. “It is easy to destroy political mutual trust, but it is difficult to rebuild it, and both sides need to take care of it.” Scholz said he hoped to “further develop” economic cooperation – while alluding to areas of disagreement. “It is good that we are able to have an exchange here about all questions, including those questions where we have different perspectives – that’s what an exchange is for,” Scholz said. “We also want to talk about how we can further develop our economic cooperation on other topics: climate change, food security, indebted countries.” Xi briefed Scholz on the main messages from the Chinese Communist Party’s national congress last month, in which Xi secured a third term in office. He said China would continue to push forward its “opening-up” policy, an apparent response to concerns that the country is moving towards protectionism. The two leaders also exchanged views on the situation in Ukraine, and expressed opposition to the use of nuclear weapons, with Xi supporting efforts by Germany and Europe to resolve the crisis. “As influential powers, China and Germany should work together in times of change and chaos to make more contributions to world peace and development,” Xi said. China vows ‘continuity and stability’ in Europe policy In a press conference with outgoing Chinese Premier Li Keqiang on Friday afternoon, Scholz urged China to use its influence on Russia to end the Ukraine crisis, and asked for reciprocal access for German investment in the Chinese market. The two also touched on Xinjiang and Taiwan, where Scholz reaffirmed its support for the “one-China” policy, but added that any change to the status quo must be peaceful and consensual, according to German reports. Scholz also announced that Covid-19 vaccines by German firm BioNTech had been approved for use among foreigners in China. Representatives from the pharmaceutical giant are among those from 12 German leading businesses accompanying Scholz on the visit. In addition, China Aviation Supplies signed US$17 billion agreement with Airbus to buy 140 aircraft. What is the state of trade relations between China and Germany? Scholz is the first G7 and western European leader to visit China since the Covid-19 pandemic began and the first since the changing of the guard in China’s leadership after last month’s congress. The trip also comes as politicians at home and Western partners push for a tougher approach to economic relations with China amid growing signs of decoupling. The EU has classified China as “partner, economic competitor and systemic rival” and there are growing concerns about its economic dependence on China, which continues to expand its investments in European infrastructure. More recently, there has been harsh criticism of Germany from its Western partners for ignoring national security warnings to approve state-owned China Ocean Shipping Company’s (Cosco) shareholding in a terminal in Hamburg , the country’s busiest port. Much of that criticism comes from the United States, which has restricted Chinese access to advanced chip technology and barred American firms from setting up advanced chip factories in China for the next 10 years. But Scholz has said repeatedly that Berlin should continue to seek cooperation with Beijing. In Germany, Hamburg is at the heart of a growing dilemma over China Some observers said Scholz’s visit was an opportunity to show “a new image” of China’s diplomacy and to improve ties with the West. Cui Hongjian, an expert on Europe at the China Institute of International Studies, said the Scholz trip could help stabilise China-German relations. “The significance of [Scholz’s] visit to China is not only to send a signal of development of China-Europe relations going forward, but also to provide a clearer and more rational understanding of Germany’s so-called China policy discussion,” Cui said. Noah Barkin, an expert in EU-China relations at the Rhodium Group, said the Scholz trip came amid concerns about Germany’s dependence on China. “It will raise questions among Germany’s allies in Europe, the US and Asia about whether Berlin has learned the lessons from its misguided reliance on Russian energy. The message Scholz is sending is that China is not part of his Zeitenwende, or foreign policy rethink,” Barkin said. Additional reporting by Agence France-Presse, Phoebe Zhang and Stella Chen