German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul’s trip to China this week signals a mutual desire to resume high-level dialogue amid mounting economic and geopolitical tensions, according to analysts.
But they cautioned that the visit, which could lay the groundwork for a trip by Chancellor Friedrich Merz early next year, should be viewed as pragmatic management of a complex “systemic rivalry”, rather than a major reset in Beijing’s relations with Berlin or Brussels.
For Germany, securing access to…