No decoupling from China

By Nils Schmid

*Nils Schmid is the Foreign Policy Spokesman of the SPD's parliamentary group in the Bundestag.*

China is not only a partner and economic competitor for Germany but also a systemic rival. This means that global challenges will also have to be solved jointly with China in the future. But no decoupling from China also means a level playing field and stricter reciprocity. Europe must not allow itself to be divided and, in coordination with the US, should find a common China policy.

The COVID vaccine – the great hope in the little vials – is our most effective weapon in the fight against the pandemic. Consequently, the distribution of the scarce commodity is a political issue not only in Germany but worldwide. The photos of government representatives having themselves photographed when vaccines made in China arrived, therefore, went around the world in no time at all. They are images meant to tell the story of the Chinese leadership's supposed success, of a China that defeated COVID-19 and now wants to make vaccines available to the world as a "global public good" (Xi Jinping), while the West is still struggling with the virus at home.

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