German Foreign Minister Analena Burbock on Good Friday warned China against using military force against Taiwan, while EU High Representative for External Relations Josep Borrell stressed that Beijing needs practical pressure on Moscow to end the war in Ukraine.

“Conflicts must be resolved peacefully,” Ms Burbock said after talks with her Chinese counterpart Qin Gang in Beijing, adding that Germany was following the tensions in the Taiwan Strait with great concern.

“A unilateral violent change in the status quo would be something unacceptable for us Europeans,” said the German foreign minister.

Mr. Borrell said it would be very difficult, if not impossible, for Europe to trust China if it did not try to find a political solution to the crisis in Ukraine.

The EU foreign policy chief’s remarks were posted on the EU website and were previously expected to be presented today at a think tank in Beijing.

However, Mr. Borrell was forced to cancel his trip to China after testing positive for COVID-19.

For his part, Mr. Qin said at a joint press conference with his German counterpart that China intends to cooperate with Germany and that the two countries are partners, not rivals.

On the issue of Ukraine, Mr. Qin said that China is committed to continuing to work for peace and hopes that all parties involved in the crisis remain objective and cool and work together.

Source: APE-MPE, Reuters.