German Minister Stresses Taiwan Trip 'About Professional Exchanges, Not
Posted on 2023-03-23 06:52:14
China'
Germany's visiting Minister of Education and Research says "professional exchanges" were the focus of her trip to Taiwan this week and not the issue of China.
Bettina Stark-Watzinger told reporters that her visit was in line with Berlin's China policy and she expected it to be "transparent and professional with no surprises."
Stark-Watzinger said she consulted with both German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and the country's foreign minister before her visit - and the "focus is professional exchanges and the issue of China is not the topic here."
Stark-Watzinger is the first German federal minister to visit Taipei since 1997.
The German delegation signed a science and technology agreement and held talks with Education Minister Pan Wen-chung to exchange views on Chinese language education and academic semiconductor institutions during its two-day trip to Taipei.
China's Foreign Ministry earlier this week expressed Beijing's "strong disapproval" of Stark-Watzinger's "reprehensible" act of visiting Taipei and called on Berlin to "respect the One China principle."
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