China, Germany economic relations mutually beneficial: spokesperson
China has been expanding opening-up during the past 40 years, as it is committed to providing foreign investors with a market-oriented, legalized and internationalized business environment, Zhao Lijian, a spokesperson of China’s Foreign Ministry, said on Monday.
Zhao’s remarks came after German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock asserted at an event held by local media Süddeutsche Zeitung that foreign companies cannot invest in key infrastructure facilities in China, including airports, ports and power grids. She alleged that China, Saudi Arabia and other wealthy members of the Group of 77 pressure other countries for selfish interest.
Zhao said that the statements by the German government official do not correspond with the facts.
China is not a member of G77. As the largest developing economy, China has always stood on the side of the developing countries, firmly defended their common interests and provided assistance within its capacity for their development to achieve mutual benefit, instead of seizing private benefits by exerting pressure on developing countries, as some countries have done, Zhao noted.
The spokesperson added that China keeps opening-up in the fields of airports, ports and telecommunications.
According to a report released by the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology, as of June 2020, a total of 266 foreign-invested telecom enterprises had been approved in China.
“We have always maintained that any commentary should respect the basic facts and take an objective and impartial position, rather than making accusations based on misinformation or subjective speculation,” Zhao said.
In response to recent remarks by some German politicians that German companies should reduce their dependence on China, Zhao said the so-called “dependence on China” is a false proposition, as cooperation is always mutually beneficial, and “dependence” is always mutual.
“We are willing to further deepen cooperation and share opportunities with countries around the world,” Zhao said.
In the first 10 months of this year, foreign direct investment from Germany rose by 95.8 percent, data from the Ministry of Commerce showed.