China Cancels Human Rights Talks With Germany

[Freibier]

TENSION OVER DALAI LAMA MEETING

China Cancels Human Rights Talks With Germany

Beijing has cancelled an annual dialogue between the Chinese and German governments on human rights. The move is a reaction to German Chancellor Angela Merkel's recent meeting with the Dalai Lama.


http://www.spiegel.de/img/0,1020,976235,00.jpg (http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/0,1518,grossbild-976234-511473,00.html)



German Chancellor Angela Merkel received the Dalai Lama in Berlin on Sept. 23.


The Chinese government has canceled human rights talks with Germany in protest over a recent meeting between German Chancellor Angela Merkel and the Dalai Lama, SPIEGEL has learned.
Last Thursday, the Chinese leadership called off the annual human rights dialogue between Germany and China, which was scheduled to take place in Beijing in December, in a show of its fury (more...) (http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/0,1518,507808,00.html) over Merkel's meeting in September with the exiled Tibetan leader.
Officials in Beijing told SPIEGEL that the Dalai Lama meeting would have "long-lasting effects" on German-Chinese relations, and that the basis for trust between the two countries had been destroyed. By meeting the Dalai Lama, Merkel had crossed a "red line," sources in the Chinese embassy in Berlin said, adding that the German government must now "take steps" to repair the damage.
Diplomatic sources in Beijing said that Chinese leaders were especially irritated that Merkel had failed to announce her planned meeting with the Dalai Lama when she visited China in August.
The German Foreign Ministry confirmed the cancellation to the Associated Press on Sunday but declined to specify why the meeting had been called off. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu recently told reporters that the meeting "hurts the feelings of the Chinese people and seriously undermines China-Germany relations."


On Monday, Germany's Commissioner for Human Rights Policy Günter Nooke told the broadcaster Deutschlandfunk that he hoped to set a new date, possibly in early 2008, for the annual human rights dialogue between Beijing and Berlin. He said Merkel had not met with the Dalai Lama "in order to irritate China," but added that the chancellor couldn't take orders from other governments on who or who not to meet.
China regularly complains about the Dalai Lama's trips abroad. The Tibetan leader and Nobel Peace Prize laureate has lived in exile in India since 1959, after a failed uprising by Tibetans against Chinese rule. China claims Tibet as its territory, and considers any meeting between world leaders and the Dalai Lama as interference in China's domestic affairs.
The Dalai Lama has recently traveled to Australia and Spain as well as Germany. He is scheduled to receive a Congressional Gold Medal in the United States on Wednesday. Beijing has lodged a complaint with Washington, but President George W. Bush still plans to attend the ceremony.
msm/spiegel

from here (http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/0,1518,511473,00.html)

[sp2c]

what's the point of these meetings anyways?

Germany: play nice from no on k?
China: no/yes (doesn't matter)
...
China: dumdumdum, nice tourist attractions but the hotelfood isn't that good
Germany: it will improve if you play nice from now on
China: no/yes

*nothing changes*

[Breakfast in Vegas]

Merkel 1:0 China

[Kampfbaer]

I´m glad, that our (German) government has some spine at least this time.

On the other habd, it surprises me, that China makes so much noise 10 month before the Oolympic games?!

[number nine]

Merkel 1:0 China

I think it's just the opposite, Merkel 0:1 China. If I have to explain why, that's because meeting with Dalai Lama will bring absolutely no good to Germany in any way, while it damaged relations with China.

If you want my opinion, it was one bad political move.

[Weasel]

I think it's just the opposite, Merkel 0:1 China. If I have to explain why, that's because meeting with Dalai Lama will bring absolutely no good to Germany in any way, while it damaged relations with China.

If you want my opinion, it was one bad political move.

x2

And an bad economical move, too.

[Freibier]

Bad move politically and economically? Feiglinge und Krämerseelen, elendige!
Well, I hate to say it but this time I gotta agree with Angie.
Whoever she meets is not chinas business.

[Weasel]

Bad move politically and economically? Feiglinge und Krämerseelen, elendige!
Well, I hate to say it but this time I gotta agree with Angie.
Whoever she meets is not chinas business.

Ouch, that hurts by reading it. 50 Ave Maria for you, sinner!

[muck]

Bad move politically and economically? Feiglinge und Krämerseelen, elendige!
Well, I hate to say it but this time I gotta agree with Angie.
Whoever she meets is not chinas business.

I hate to say this but this time I gotta agree with you! We should never let other countries determine how our policy does look like.

[lenovo]

Good job, China gov

80% of VW's profit are from China, I guess Chinese should ban German cars for a while

[Freibier]

Good job, China gov

80% of VW's profit are from China, I guess Chinese should ban German cars for a while
so ****ing what!
rofl

[Breakfast in Vegas]

I think it's just the opposite, Merkel 0:1 China. If I have to explain why, that's because meeting with Dalai Lama will bring absolutely no good to Germany in any way, while it damaged relations with China.

If you want my opinion, it was one bad political move.
If you want my opinion the West is going to have to get used to not bowing down to the political will of China.

Germany is free to follow it's course as it sees fit.

Doing so is a sign of strength.

Merkel 1:0 China

[Kitsune]

Yes right. China should better behave or else Merkel will see the Taiwanese head-of-state next week...

[Breakfast in Vegas]

Yes right. China should better behave or else Merkel will see the Taiwanese head-of-state next week...
She's more likely to start a sizzling affair with Richard Gere...

[Kitsune]

Please, keep quiet, will you? The images which your last statement caused in my mind are simply deplorable. Stop it before I lose my lunch.


[...]



On a more serious note, I somewhat doubt that this Dalai Lama thing was such a smart move. It may be good for Merkel's inner political standing (which actually may have been the whole point of the exercise) but it was not too smart on the foreign political level - and it won't help Tibet very much, either. This whole attitude - to walk around with the constantly raised index finger, criticising the human rights situation here and there, talking with various heads-of-states about "our concerns" about this and that - does not amount to much if one has not the will to actually act when the push comes to shove. And as it is, Germany is neither willing nor able to do the latter and Merkel seems not very interested to change this (she apparently isn't that brave). What is left is a foreign policy that all too often talks the talk instead to walk the walk.
Also, there may be the danger of Germany being slowly moved into an international off position by her (with her usual small steps of course). Over the course of her chancellorship the situation with regard to the USA has bettered somewhat, but not fundamentally so, the differences in thinking are simply too great. But the relations to Russia have cooled down and the relations to France have as well (and they might even get worse in the future, I for my part predict dark clouds in the west) and now our chancellorette manages to piss off the Chinese real good. We will see wether she will finally enter the annals of history as such a great foreign politican after all. Alright, it may be too early to pass judgement, but as for yet I withold my applause.

[number nine]

If you want my opinion the West is going to have to get used to not bowing down to the political will of China.

Germany is free to follow it's course as it sees fit.

Doing so is a sign of strength.

Merkel 1:0 China

C'mon, like it has been bowing down to China until now. And like it hasn't been free to follow it's course until now. And like it needs to show that it is strong, just to whom, I wonder?

Yes your opinion can differ, I don't deny. But neither you can deny that most pragmatic action has not been taken.

[Rictor]

Neither China nor Germany lost anything. It's a symbolic meeting, so Germany gets to look like a human-rights champion and China gets to make a fuss but in the end make no practical steps to harm relations with Germany. And the Dalai Lama gets a nice photo-op. Everybody wins.

If China went around severing relations with every country that hosted the Dalai Lama, they would very quickly run out of people to trade with.

[Breakfast in Vegas]

The end is near.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071016/ap_on_go_pr_wh/us_dalai_lama

[manilaboy]

Neither China nor Germany lost anything. It's a symbolic meeting, so Germany gets to look like a human-rights champion and China gets to make a fuss but in the end make no practical steps to harm relations with Germany. And the Dalai Lama gets a nice photo-op. Everybody wins.

If China went around severing relations with every country that hosted the Dalai Lama, they would very quickly run out of people to trade with.

or, the Dalai Lama would be stuck in his house.:roll:

[Freibier]

or, the Dalai Lama would be stuck in his house.:roll:
Nope,
China is like a huge elephant with legs of clay, they lack the stamina to bully around highly developed nations.

[Nightsky]

On a more serious note, I somewhat doubt that this Dalai Lama thing was such a smart move. It may be good for Merkel's inner political standing (which actually may have been the whole point of the exercise) but it was not too smart on the foreign political level - and it won't help Tibet very much, either. This whole attitude - to walk around with the constantly raised index finger, criticising the human rights situation here and there, talking with various heads-of-states about "our concerns" about this and that - does not amount to much if one has not the will to actually act when the push comes to shove. And as it is, Germany is neither willing nor able to do the latter and Merkel seems not very interested to change this (she apparently isn't that brave). What is left is a foreign policy that all too often talks the talk instead to walk the walk.
Also, there may be the danger of Germany being slowly moved into an international off position by her (with her usual small steps of course). Over the course of her chancellorship the situation with regard to the USA has bettered somewhat, but not fundamentally so, the differences in thinking are simply too great. But the relations to Russia have cooled down and the relations to France have as well (and they might even get worse in the future, I for my part predict dark clouds in the west) and now our chancellorette manages to piss off the Chinese real good. We will see wether she will finally enter the annals of history as such a great foreign politican after all. Alright, it may be too early to pass judgement, but as for yet I withold my applause.

best and most thorough analysis in this thread so far

[manilaboy]

Nope,
China is like a huge elephant with legs of clay, they lack the stamina to bully around highly developed nations.

and the Dalai Lama has magical powers flying around the world with his golden wings,,,,err....first class..

why does it have to be China not being a superpower and not able to dictate to other nations? why can't it be that tibet
is a just a piece of land that only china, dalai lama, and hollywood actors care about?

[Freibier]

and the Dalai Lama has magical powers flying around the world with his golden wings,,,,err....first class..

why does it have to be China not being a superpower and not able to dictate to other nations? why can't it be that tibet
is a just a piece of land that only china, dalai lama, and hollywood actors care about?
Don't be such drama queens and stop that Kindergarten behavior.
Don't you have better things to do? Like copycatting some of our tech?
j/k ;)