Visit German Minister of Foreign Affairs Johan Wadeful Kini it finally happened - from the second attempt. He met with three ministers and one vice president in one day. The trip, which was originally planned for the end of October, was canceled at short notice. At the time, it was stated that the reason was that Wadeful could not schedule any high-level meetings, except with his counterpart, the Chinese foreign minister.
In Berlin, they suspect that the reason for this is the criticism that the CDU politician Vadeful had previously directed at China, which caused discomfort among the Chinese leadership. China threatens Taiwan by insisting that Taiwan's status quo must not be changed by force. Beijing considers Taiwan to be its breakaway province and in 2005 adopted the so-called The Anti-Secession Law, which legitimizes the use of armed force for reunification should Taiwan declare independence, writes DW.
"Taiwan at the center of China's core interests"
Taiwanese the issue is at the center of China's core interests, Chinese Vice President Han Zheng reiterated during a meeting with Vadeful on Monday, December 8, 2025. China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that Wadeful, on behalf of the new German government, explicitly affirmed the so-called "One China" principle.
In this context, Beijing came forward in a conciliatory manner. "It doesn't matter if someone comes earlier or later - what matters is why they come," said Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. "He comes to initiate cooperation, not to fight. He comes to promote greater understanding, not to exacerbate differences." Wang also explained in detail the historical background of the island of Taiwan, but also praised Germany for successfully dealing with its past after World War II. Japan occupied Taiwan before the end of the war, and was returned to China in 1945 as part of the Potsdam Conference.
"Unlike Germany, Japan has never seriously and honestly addressed its war guilt, even 80 years after the end of the war," Wang said, referring to a statement by the new prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, who said Japan would provide military aid to Taiwan in the event of a conflict. "If we want to change the status quo, then in our opinion it must be achieved peacefully and by consensus through negotiations," Wadeful said after the talks in Beijing, in response to a question posed by DW reporter Richard Walker.
China again the most important trade partner of Germany?
China is particularly important for the German economy - not only as a sales market, but also as a major supplier of raw materials. Economically relations between the world's second- and third-largest economies are "of central importance," Wadeful stressed during a meeting with Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao.
From 2016 to 2023, China was Germany's largest trading partner – until the US took over the top spot in 2024. According to data from the German Federal Statistical Office, China has a good chance of regaining its leading position in 2025. In the first three quarters of this year, imports from China rose significantly to 124,5 billion euros (+8,5 percent) - while exports to China simultaneously fell to 61,4 billion euros (-12,3 percent).
The reason for China's resurgence as a trading partner is due "primarily to very weak export figures to our most important sales market, United States", emphasizes Volker Treier, head of foreign trade and member of the Executive Board of the German Chamber of Industry and Commerce (DIHK). "Not yet, because the sales outlook in China has fundamentally improved for our companies."
Prospects for the export of rare earth metals
In order to reduce the risk in future cooperation with China, the German Bundestag established the "Commission for the Review of Security-Relevant Economic Relations between Germany and China." "This also includes the issue of dependence on raw materials, technologies and supply chains," explained Nicolas Cipelius, a CDU lawmaker, last Thursday, before traveling to China with Foreign Minister Vadeful.
The German economy is heavily dependent on imports of rare metals from China. They are necessary e.g. for the production of magnets in motors and generators, high-performance chips or for optical networks. Although Germany has deposits of rare metals, their extraction and processing are energy-intensive processes, which significantly burden the environment. Currently, China is by far the largest producer, followed by Brazil, India and Australia.
Such dependence should be avoided. "We want to achieve positive development together," emphasized Cipelius, a member of the Committee for Economic Cooperation and Development of the German Bundestag.
German industry recommends political trust
The Chinese government has currently restricted exports because Beijing wants to control the use of intermediate or finished products containing a total of 17 rare metals, Friedolin Strack of the Confederation of German Industry (BDI) explained last Friday at the annual meeting of the German-Chinese Business Association (DCW). Beijing wants to prevent these materials from reaching US markets.
Export restrictions are an instrument in the trade war with the US and are not directly aimed at the German economy. Although Germany was affected, German companies were able to buy Chinese rare earth elements in several cases this year, Strak emphasized.
Beijing has now indicated to Foreign Minister Wadeful the possibility of introducing general export licenses. "China offered to be able to issue general licenses for European, for German companies, and encouraged us to encourage our companies to apply," Wadeful said in Beijing.
However, Fridolin Strack from the Confederation of German Industry (BDI) emphasized that Chinese export licenses will be approved more quickly only if political trust remains stable. In the business climate survey for 2025/26. conducted by the German Chamber of Commerce in China, 75 percent of surveyed German companies in that country stated that "good relations between Germany and China, including those at the political level, are crucial for the future business activities of these companies," reported Volker Treier, head of the foreign trade department at the Association of German Chambers of Industry and Commerce (DIHK). "Unfortunately, not the same percentage of respondents say that these relationships are already like that."
