Friedrich Merz, who recently assumed office as Germany’s Chancellor, held his first call with Chinese President Xi Jinping this month. During the call, Merz introduced the joint efforts made by Europe and the United States to facilitate a swift ceasefire in Ukraine and urged China to support these efforts, emphasizing the desire to work together as partners in addressing global challenges.

In recent weeks, diplomatic efforts to resolve the Russia-Ukraine conflict have intensified. Last week, Russian and Ukrainian officials held their first face-to-face talks in Istanbul since the war began. However, the Kremlin stated on Thursday that no agreement had been reached for a new round of peace negotiations with Ukraine, denying reports that talks were to be held at the Vatican.

According to a statement from the Chinese Foreign Ministry, Xi Jinping called on Germany to provide more policy support and facilitation for bilateral investment cooperation, ensuring that Chinese companies have a fair, transparent, and non-discriminatory business environment. The Chinese leader emphasized that the current global situation is undergoing profound changes and highlighted the importance of strengthening the partnership between China and Germany.

On the same day, Merz also stated on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), "The economic relationship between China and Germany is important, and Germany is committed to fair competition and mutual benefit principles." China has long been a significant export market for Germany, but in recent years, Chinese companies have increasingly become competitors to German firms in various manufacturing sectors, including the automotive industry.