BERLIN – The European Union has been fighting for four years to negotiate an investment agreement with China, facing opposition from some of its members and, increasingly, the US. In the end, it was German Chancellor Angela Merkel who pushed the project toward the goal last month, according to officials familiar with the talks.
After sealing the deal on December 29, at a virtual meeting between EU leaders and Chinese President Xi Jinping, Ms. Merkel held an independent video conference with Xi and French President Emmanuel Macron to finalize the details of an agreement that she later described to attendees as a star achievement of her final year in office.
For decades, the legacy of the German Nazi past has prevented the country from exercising strong international power. Instead, its foreign policy has focused on cultivating good relations with allies and rivals to protect the exports on which its economy depends.
When Merkel resigns later this year, few expect that to change, which could complicate President-elect Joe Biden’s plan to build a broad front to rival China. This is despite the elections scheduled for Saturday for a new presidency of the Christian Democratic Union of Ms. Merkel, who could ultimately take over as chancellor, with a candidate who had more baffling opinions than her.
Under President Trump, the U.S. shunned its allies from relating directly to China in an attempt to improve the terms of its economic relationship with the Asian giant. But now, just as Mr Biden calls for a collective approach to China from Western democracies, it is likely that the EU and Germany, after reaching their own bilateral agreement with Beijing, will not look back. .