German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul began a two-day visit to China on Monday, emphasizing the need for fair, rule-based trade as he seeks to deepen economic ties. In Beijing, after talks with Commerce Minister Wang Wentao, Wadephul said he supports free global trade and the removal of barriers between markets.
Wadephul described China as Germany’s most important trading partner and said the trip is intended to identify where economic cooperation can be strengthened and where obstacles remain. The visit comes after a six-week delay that saw Beijing initially withhold confirmation of meetings with key officials amid tensions over Taiwan—a lapse observers called a diplomatic scandal because the trip was meant in part to prepare Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s first visit to China.
The minister has also publicly criticized what he called increasingly aggressive Chinese behavior in the Taiwan Strait and the East and South China Seas.
Following the meeting with Wang Wentao, Wadephul is scheduled to meet Chinese Vice President Han Zheng and Foreign Minister Wang Yi. Topics expected to be raised include Beijing’s restrictions on rare-earth exports—materials vital to automotive, technology and defense industries—and concerns about China’s economic ties with Russia, notably continued purchases of Russian oil despite Beijing’s formal neutrality on the Ukraine war.
Germany itself halted large-scale Russian gas imports in 2022, and Wadephul’s discussions aim to balance commercial engagement with addressing security and supply-chain risks. The visit seeks to map practical areas for cooperation while pressing Beijing on trade fairness and geopolitical behavior.