Wang Yi in Munich Points to China’s Unique Way of Dealing with Crises

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi was the one representative of a major power to go against the narrative put out by the organizers of the Munich Security Conference. Speaking on Feb. 17, he stated that in the face of all the current crises, China is committed to remaining a force for stability “in a turbulent world”. The Chinese approach, he stated, advocates for non-interference in internal affairs, opposes imposing one’s will on others, and consistently seeks political settlement while opposing the use of force. He recalled that China had actively worked to mediate a historic reconciliation between Saudi Arabia and Iran, setting off a “wave of reconciliation” across the Middle East, as reported by his Foreign Ministry. This is, in his view, a living example of implementing the Global Security Initiative put forth by President Xi Jinping.

While the European Union, and the G7 generally, are aggressively pushing a policy of “de-risking” (read “de-coupling”) in respect to China, the Foreign Minister pointed out that “competition is not the trend of the times”. In fact, he said, “the absence of cooperation is the biggest risk”. Therefore, “Those who attempt to shut China out in the name of de-risking will make a historical mistake…. The world economy is like a big ocean that cannot be cut into isolated lakes. The trend toward economic globalization cannot be reversed. We need to work together to make globalization more universally beneficial and inclusive.”

With respect to the pressure put on China to distance itself from Russia, Wang Yi made clear that that was not going to happen. He said that the China-Russia relationship was based on “no alliances, no confrontation, and not targeting a third country”. Rather, it is the example of what a “major-power relationship” should look like. He also reiterated that Beijing would not take part in any peace conference on Ukraine that does not include Russia as a participant.

Wang also addressed the crisis in Israel and Palestine, calling for an immediate ceasefire, the opening of humanitarian corridors, and an international peace conference to resolve the conflict.

During the Q&A, MSC Chairman Christoph Heusgen referred to the South China Sea and the Red Sea as two areas of potential conflict, provoking a laugh from Wang Yi, who pointed out to an obvious difference. “The Taiwan question cannot be compared with what’s happening in the Red Sea. The Taiwan question is China’s internal affair … Taiwan is a part of China. It has never been a country.” When Heusgen further remarked that German companies were leaving Xinjiang because of the accusations of “forced labor” there, Wang replied: “We have seen so much fabricated information from different parties. The so-called forced labor is only a groundless accusation.” Wang invited conference attendees to come visit Xinjiang, saying it was “open to all that are interested to visit.”