Hysterical, insane, sinophobic
China’s ambassador rages against Berlin in the case of university espionage
08/12/2023, 6:59 p.m
First, a German university no longer accepts Chinese scholarship holders, then Minister of Education Stark-Watzinger praised the approach against possible espionage. Now Beijing’s ambassador in Berlin is bursting at the seams. The whole thing is a farce, he even suggests medical treatment.
The Chinese Ambassador to Germany, Ken Wu, has dismissed fears of espionage by Chinese students. Federal Education Minister Bettina Stark-Watzinger indicated that Chinese students posed a threat of espionage, the diplomat told the “Berliner Zeitung”. At the same time, the Office for the Protection of the Constitution published a security notice in which a Chinese authority was classified as an intelligence service.
“Such an approach, in my view, has become hysterical, insane and a sinophobia that needs to be dealt with.” The safety notice is nothing but a political farce and poisons the atmosphere of cooperation. “Such an approach not least stigmatizes certain groups. Hence my appeal to some German politicians and authorities: they should take care of their own tasks and keep their hands off the students.”
Ken Wu: Rational China policy needed
In an interview at the end of July, Stark-Watzinger praised the Friedrich-Alexander University (FAU) in Erlangen-Nuremberg. Since June 1, there has been a decision to exclude people who are solely funded by the Chinese Scholarship Council (CSC). The CSC scholarship program awards scholarships and is under the responsibility of the country’s Ministry of Education. At the time, Stark-Watzinger warned that it was a strategic instrument of China, with the help of which technological gaps were to be closed by gaining knowledge from abroad. In addition, the scholarship holders could not fully exercise the freedom of opinion and research anchored in the German Basic Law.
When asked about the German government’s China strategy, the newspaper’s ambassador said: “If Germany sees China as a competitor and systemic rival, this does not correspond to the interests of both countries. We therefore hope that Germany will pursue a rational China policy. One China -Strategy from an ideological point of view will only lead to misunderstandings and reinforce misinterpretations.”