BEIJING (Sputnik) — On Monday, German media reported that a German embassy envoy was summoned to the Chinese Foreign Ministry in protest over Berlin's alleged efforts on hampering the Chinese investors in Germany. Berlin neither confirmed nor denied the data.
"I do not know where you got this information. It is not true, as far as I know… Though, I can tell you that this is a normal thing for Chinese and German diplomatic missions to be at a constant contact and hold consultations on the bilateral relations and to look for solutions over corresponding issues. This is a common practice," Foreign Ministry's spokeswoman Hua Chunying said at a briefing.
In an op-ed, published in Die Welt last Saturday, Gabriel accused Germany's key eastern trade partner of playing foul. He said China was limiting European investment and takeovers of Chinese businesses, while at the same time trying to buy hi-tech firms in Europe that worked on strategically important technologies.