Germany's Laschet sees no need to reverse China policy over human rights

[June 22, 2021]    BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany must discuss its concerns about China's record on human rights with Beijing but that does not mean it needs to reverse its policy towards China, the leader of Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats (CDU) said on Tuesday.

Christian Democratic Union (CDU) leader and party's top candidate for parliamentary elections Armin Laschet speaks during a news conference after a party leadership meeting, the day after regional elections in Saxony-Anhalt, in Berlin, Germany June 7, 2021. Tobias Schwarz/Pool via REUTERS

"I support the government's China strategy.. We must talk about our concerns (on human rights) but there is no need to turn our China policy on its head," Armin Laschet told a conference organised by the BDI industry association.

Starting a new Cold War with China was not the right approach, Laschet said.

(Reporting by Madeline Chambers; Editing by Riham Alkousaa)

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