Dealing with China
January 15, 2010
German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle told reporters he had raised specific human rights cases in his meeting with Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao. But he declined to say which dissidents he had mentioned, saying that wouldn't help their cause.
The wife of Liu Xiaobo, a dissident sentenced last month to 11 years in prison for "incitement to subvert state power," had asked Westerwelle to bring up her husband's case in his high-level meetings. "It would be very important," she told the German press agency, DPA.
The German foreign minister is in China as part of a four-day trip to Asia - his first visit to the region as foreign minister - and is set to meet with opposition groups on Saturday.
Earlier on Friday he met with his Chinese counterpart Yang Jiechi. After Yang said the Chinese government was "absolutely against" any official visits between the Dalai Lama and foreign governments, Westerwelle told reporters he was open to meeting the exiled Tibetan leader. Westerwelle said he has met the Dalai Lama on other occasions, but that no visit was currently planned.
Regarding the Himalayan region of Tibet, the two foreign ministers shared their "different views." Yang reiterated that Beijing regards the region as a part of the territory of China. Relations between China and Germany were strained when German Chancellor Angela Merkel met with the Dalai Lama in 2007.
Westerwelle pushes for rights and freedoms
Westerwelle said he has also broached the subjects of human rights, press freedom and freedom of speech in China in his meetings with Yang and Wen.
"My foreign minister counterpart knows that a cornerstone of our foreign policy is standing up for human rights, for the protection of minorities, freedom of opinion, freedom of the press and freedom of religion," he said at a press conference with Yang.
Iran remains a global challenge
In addition to disagreeing on Tibet, Yang and Westerwelle also expressed a difference of opinion in dealing with Iran. Westerwelle said Germany was ready to impose new sanctions against Tehran if diplomatic negotiations failed. Yang said every country had a right to the use of nuclear energy for peaceful means and that a diplomatic solution must be found.
Western countries suspect that the Islamic Republic is seeking to build nuclear weapons. Iranian officials maintain that they are simply investing in nuclear energy. Westerwelle said it would be "unacceptable" for Iran to develop nuclear weapons.
Working on German-Chinese relations
Yang and Westerwelle announced that they would be meeting twice a year to strengthen the relationship between their two countries. Yang said he would be attending the annual Munich Security Conference in February as the first Chinese foreign minister to do so.
On Thursday he held talks with officials in Japan, including Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama. They agreed to cooperate in efforts to secure permanent seats at the United Nations Security Council.
hf/AFP/APD/dpa
Editor: Chuck Penfold