China summons German envoy over Baerbock's dictator remark

RT.com
19 Sep 2023, 06:13 GMT+10

Beijing has strongly criticized the German FM for labeling President Xi a despot, calling her words ?open political provocation?

The Chinese Foreign Ministry has summoned German ambassador Patricia Flor after Berlin's top diplomat, Annalena Baerbock, referred to Chinese President Xi Jinping as a "dictator."

The ambassador "was summoned to the Chinese Foreign Ministry [on Sunday]," a spokesman from the German Foreign Ministry told AFP on Monday.

Baerbock made her remark while on a visit to New York on Thursday. Speaking to Fox News, she claimed that if the West allowed Ukraine to lose its conflict with Russia, this would embolden "other dictators in the world...Like Xi, the Chinese president."

Beijing was "extremely dissatisfied" with Baerbock's words, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning told reporters earlier on Monday. Mao said that Baerbock's "absurd" comments "violate China's political dignity" and are tantamount to an "open political provocation."

Relations between Berlin and Beijing have deteriorated as of late, with Germany calling for reduced economic reliance on China in its first-ever China strategy, which was published in July. Despite China being Germany's largest trading partner, the document branded Beijing a "systemic rival."

In labeling Xi a "dictator," Baerbock followed in the footsteps of US President Joe Biden, who applied the same descriptor to the Chinese leader in June. Biden's statement came immediately after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met Xi in Beijing, and reportedly caused American officials to reassure their Chinese counterparts that Biden's words did not represent a shift in US policy.

(RT.com)

Watch latest videos

News RELEASES

Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Beijing Bulletin.

More Information

27 ℃

Fair in Beijing/Capital

Technology

Section

Alibaba head, President Erdogan debate $2 billion funding in Turkey

ANKARA, Turkey: During a meeting, Michael Evans, President of the Alibaba Group, told Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan that the Chinese ...

New plans to limit AI use by US Homeland Security Department

WASHINGTON D.C.: Despite highlighting the technology's success in assisting drug busts and catching criminals, the Department of Homeland Security announced ...

TikTok fined 345 million euros by Ireland for mishandling children's data

DUBLIN, Ireland: TikTok Technology Limited (TTL) has received a €345 million fine from the Data Protection Commission (DPC) of Ireland ...

Cybersecurity key to boosting customer confidence, developing UAE's banking and financial sector: UBF

ABU DHABI, 21st September, 2023 (WAM) -- UAE Banks Federation (UBF) reiterated its commitment to supporting efforts that enhance secure ...

NASA's Mars rovers could inspire a more ethical future for AI

Since ChatGPT's release in late 2022, many news outlets have reported on the ethical threats posed by artificial intelligence. Tech ...

US Announces Financial Effort to Support Emerging Democracies

The United States on Wednesday announced a $255 million program it says will support emerging democracies.As part of the effort, ...

Business

Section