What this visit says about Germany's relationship with China

For a long time, the word "Taiwan" alone made German politicians nervous. China, Germany's most important economic partner, should not be upset. Federal Education Minister Bettina Stark-Watzinger has now traveled to the island threatened by the People's Republic. She arrived in Taipei on Tuesday for a two-day visit. You can call the visit historic, after all, the FDP politician was the first German cabinet member to travel to Taiwan in 26 years.

But although Germany is now on the side of Ukraine, it is reluctant to take an equally clear position on Taiwan: Stark-Watzinger's ministry emphasized that this was a specialist visit. Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen and Foreign Minister Joseph Wu will not meet with the minister - out of German concern for Beijing.

After the German China policy under Gerhard Schröder and Angela Merkel was driven by business and visiting Taiwan was taboo, this is now set to change with the “turning point” and the government’s announced new China strategy. They want to move away from the "system rival" Beijing and closer to democratic "value partners". They are intended to expand economic relationships and diversify supply chains. Stark-Watzinger's journey fits into this new age.

But the German government doesn't really seem to have the courage to stand up to China. Stark-Watzinger said in Taipei that it was an "honour" to be the first female federal minister in Taiwan after such a long time. At the same time, she downplayed the importance of her visit, which China had protested. "It's really about professional exchange," she said on the sidelines of a ceremony to mark the signing of a scientific cooperation agreement between Taiwan and Germany.

Taiwan is the world leader in semiconductors, which are built into all electronic devices. Cooperation in education and research with Taiwan is obvious. Stark-Watzinger already received her counterpart Wu Tsung-Tsong in Berlin in November to talk about microchips. The first European factory of the Taiwanese semiconductor giant TSMC is to be built in Dresden.

When they arrived in Taipei, Stark-Watzinger emphasized that they wanted to exchange information about the future topics of semiconductor research, green hydrogen and battery technology. There was no mention of the increasingly threatening Chinese Communist Party, which considers Taiwan part of its territory.

Because Germany continues to follow the so-called one-China policy, just like the USA. This recognizes the People's Republic as the only sovereign state in China and does not allow diplomatic relations with Taiwan. Germany only has an unofficial representation in Taipei. However, the signatories to this policy do not accept the Chinese claim to Taiwan – contrary to what Beijing has suggested.

The German government said several times indirectly that Stark-Watzinger's visit would not raise the issue of Taiwan. When asked by a reporter, the minister said: "The federal government's China strategy remains unchanged. In this respect, today's visit is not related to this."

The efforts of the German government not to step on China's toes are also reflected in the people the minister meets in Taiwan. According to a report in the Financial Times, Taipei offered the education minister a meeting with Foreign Minister Wu, but Berlin declined. There will also be no talks with President Tsai. In the past, she has even received simple parliamentarians, including three Bundestag delegations who have visited Taiwan since autumn 2022.

Stark-Watzinger instead met with her counterpart Wu, Digital Affairs Minister Audrey Tang and Education Minister Pan Wen-chung. Other countries are braver. When then-US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan last August, she met with President Tsai. China took this as an opportunity to carry out military maneuvers around Taiwan for almost a week and also fired missiles over the island for the first time.

The fact that Germany is so cautious is due to its long and close economic ties with the People's Republic. The Federal Republic of Germany obtains 98 percent of its rare earths from China, and at the same time the country is a very important market for German cars. Last year, trade with China rose to a record level - despite all the political warnings against too much dependence: According to the Federal Statistical Office, goods worth around 298 billion euros were traded, which corresponds to growth of around 21 percent compared to the previous year.

Nevertheless, Stark-Watzinger's trip shows that Germany is no longer afraid of high-ranking diplomatic visits to Taiwan. It sets an example for more solidarity among democracies. And the timing couldn't be more geopolitically explosive: while the education minister is in Taipei, Chinese President Xi Jinping is meeting with Vladimir Putin in Moscow. That should be part of Beijing's work on a new world based on the Chinese model.

Economic ties between democracies and Taiwan give the island nation greater visibility and security. Both are urgently needed. Just last week, Honduras stripped Taiwan of its statehood and instead established diplomatic relations with China. Only 13 countries maintain official relations with Taiwan, including Guatemala, Palau, Paraguay and the African Eswatini - all of them rather insignificant players in world politics.

In recent years in particular, Beijing has done everything it can to assert political interests through economic relations. Honduras' decision came just over a month after the country had started negotiations with China on the construction of a new hydroelectric power plant. As a result, Taiwan is increasingly isolated internationally.

The fact that more and more countries are choosing China over Taiwan is weakening democracies in general and also the US and Europe. The one China policy is unlikely to be scrapped anytime soon.

Taipei knows this too and is satisfied with its important unofficial relations with countries such as the USA, Japan and EU member states. As the largest EU country, Germany is apparently still looking for its role in this changing geopolitical network.