In mid-May 1999, a passenger plane from Europe landed at Beijing Capital International Airport. The plane sent a message to the ground tower before landing, and the passengers on board were German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder.
Despite the visit of a head of state, China** did not hold a grand welcome ceremony at the airport, or even let the television station broadcast it. Instead, some leaders of the security services went to the airport to meet the European leader.
However, Schroeder did not complain about this, but expressed his gratitude to the staff around him for letting China land safely.
Four days before Schroeder's visit to China, a missile fired by a US bomber unfortunately hit the Chinese Embassy in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, causing a Chinese contingent.
The tragedy stirred up the Chinese people, who took to the streets, expressed their atrocities against NATO, and even smashed the glass of the US embassy. In the midst of this tense period, Schröder decided to visit China, unilaterally bringing apologies from Germany and NATO, and this brief visit eased tensions between China and Europe.
Soon after, in November, Schroeder visited China again, bringing billions of dollars in investment, which played a huge role in China's economic development. Schroeder has also left a good reputation in China and is known as "China's friend".
So, what kind of person is Chancellor Schroeder? When Sino-European relations fell to a freezing point in 1999, how did he improve relations with China? Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder was known for his multifaceted diplomacy and good relations with China and Russia.
So, how do Germans view him today?
Gerhard Schroeder was born in 1944 in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. His father, a World War II soldier, died in the brutal Eastern Front, leaving Schroeder half orphaned.
The mother raised five children on her own, had a difficult life, and finally chose to remarry. Schroeder didn't find out about his father's ** until 2001.
After the end of World War II, the social assistance provided to orphans who had lost their parents in the war became an important pillar of Schröder's family life.
In 1958, at the age of 14, Schroeder dropped out of school to work due to his family's financial difficulties, and he worked as an apprentice in a shop until he was 18 years old. In the 60s, as the West German economy took off and the state began to invest heavily in the education industry, Schroeder worked in a shop and studied at night school, eventually obtaining a university law degree and becoming a lawyer.
After that, Schröder threw himself into politics, joined the German Social Democratic Party, and in 1972 became the first West German politician to visit China, when he met ***
In 1978, Schröder was elected leader of the Social Democratic Party for the first time and successfully entered the German Bundestag. However, in the 80s, the center of gravity of the German political scene quietly shifted, shifting from economic construction to preparations for national reunification.
In 1989, the fall of the Berlin Wall kicked off the reunification of the two Germanys, and in 1990, East and West Germany were formally merged, and West Germany ** dominated the new Germany.
However, senior politicians in West Germany gradually lost the trust of the population because they were too conservative and rigid. In an attempt to change the situation, the SPD elected the young and promising Gerhard Schröder as its new leader, who gained a great reputation and reputation in the region during his tenure as governor of Lower Saxony.
In 1998, Schröder successfully defeated the then German Chancellor Kohl and became the new chancellor of Germany, stepping onto the highest stage of German politics.
In 1999, the German Bundestag returned to the Reichstag, the symbol of German power, and Schröder became the first chancellor to speak at the Reichstag after World War II, making him extremely proud.
However, in the same year, the "Kosovo crisis" escalated into a war, in which the forces of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and the Kosovo Liberation Army were fiercely engaged, and NATO was involved. The year 1999 was a sensitive time, with the creation of the "eurozone" and the issuance of the euro in January of that year, which put pressure on the United States, which had a clear war intent to blow the European economy and return capital to Wall Street.
Although the EU is aware of the intentions of the United States, countries can only follow the United States due to NATO restrictions. On 8 May 1999, the United States bombed the Chinese Embassy in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, killing three people and injuring dozens of others.
China was a hot economic market at the time, and the rupture of Sino-European relations would have an impact on Germany's economic development. At this critical moment, Schroeder chose a lightning visit to China.
After the May 8 Incident in 1999, Chinese people around the world were indignant at the atrocities of the United States and NATO, so they held a big march. Europeans realize that being hostile to China will have serious consequences for themselves.
In the EU, Germany plays an important role, and the deterioration of Sino-European relations has a great impact on Germany. At this time, Schroeder stood up and apologized for NATO's actions. On May 12, 1999, Schroder's plane landed at Beijing Capital Airport.
China** was in a state of anger and did not send a welcome team to greet them, only the leaders and security personnel of Beijing Municipality were present. Schroeder arrived at the State Guest House in a low-key manner for a brief meeting with the Chinese leader.
A day later, he flew back to Europe.
Schroeder flew thousands of miles to China on behalf of NATO's European members, and although the visit was short, he was in a happy mood. Because his plane was able to land, he communicated with the Chinese side and received an official reception.
The purpose of Schröder's visit is to send an important message to China that the Kosovo issue has nothing to do with the EU. On this basis, China and Germany exchanged views on the Kosovo issue and Sino-German economic issues, and at the end of that year, Schroeder led a delegation to visit China again, which was officially received by China, and China and Germany entered a short honeymoon period.
Why does Schroder value China? In 1999, starting from the actual situation in Europe, he saw that China's reform and opening up had achieved remarkable results, and the world's factory had taken shape.
Germany's matchmaking has provided nearly 200 investment opportunities for German companies, who have set up factories in China with $1.5 billion and introduced billions of dollars of German technology.
These two investments brought tens of billions of dollars in profits to Germany in 10 years. This is a win-win cooperation, in which Germany is richly rewarded, and China is given the opportunity to develop and absorb advanced German technology.
From 1999 to 2005, the economic cooperation between Germany and China during the Schreder era deepened and had a far-reaching impact.
After completing his investment in China, Schroeder returned to China to carry out reforms. However, the German economy was already facing serious challenges at this time. At the beginning of the 21st century, the German economy fell into a downturn, and unemployment rose to its highest level since World War II.
Schroeder believes that the implementation of high-welfare policies has led to great financial pressure on the country. Therefore, in 2003, he decided to take radical steps to reform the system of "state welfare" in order to reduce the heavy burden on European countries.
However, the move sparked popular discontent, as the cuts to pensions and unemployment benefits led to a decline in Schroeder's approval ratings. In the end, Schroeder lost to Merkel in 2005, ending his career as chancellor.
Schroeder resigned from his old position and joined Gazprom as chairman of the Nord Stream project. The fact that the German Chancellor actually works in a Russian company may seem unbelievable at first glance.
However, Schroeder's post was personally arranged by Putin. Their friendship dates back to the 2003 Iraq War, an important event that changed history.
That year, the United States invaded Iraq without the consent of the UN Security Council, and Britain responded positively, while only Russia's Putin, France's Chirac, and German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder clearly opposed it.
Since the end of World War II, Germany has been the staunchest military ally of the United States, the United States has stationed a large number of troops in Germany, and successive German chancellors have been subservient to the United States. However, Schroeder was the first German chancellor to dare to speak out against the United States, a move that earned Putin's respect.
Putin and Schroeder have a close personal relationship, and Schroeder has always supported Russia and opposed NATO expansion at the moment. On Schroeder's birthday in 2004, Putin came to the scene to congratulate him, which made him feel more face.
Therefore, it is also reasonable for Putin to find him an easy and well-paid job after Schroeder's departure. Since 2005, Schroeder has been active in the international community with his former influence, especially frequent visits to China, promoting German-Chinese people-to-people exchanges.
As an old friend of China, he was deeply thrilled to be invited to the opening ceremony of the 2008 Beijing Olympics and received by Chinese leaders.
Although Schröder, the patriarch of the German SPD, has moved away from politics, his actions are still under the watchful eye of Germany. In particular, his close ties with Russia are seen as inconsistent with the current political currents in Europe.
For example, on Schroeder's 70th birthday in 2014, he held a birthday party in St. Petersburg, Russia, and Putin was also present to congratulate him. This provoked fierce criticism from Germany, who said that Schroeder had gone out of Europe and suggested that his ties with Russia were too close.
However, Schröder countered these criticisms, saying that even public figures should have their own private lives, and that this right should not be interfered with by Germany.
In the arena of international politics, former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder has always presented himself as independent and impartial. In 2018, the United States launched a war against China, and Europe took the opportunity to fan the flames.
However, Schroeder stood up for China at this time, arguing that although there are some conflicts between China and the United States, the common interests are stronger, and the actions of the United States will only undermine China's stability and prosperity.
Two years later, in 2022, the conflict between Russia and Ukraine escalated into a war, with the European Union and NATO besieging Russia. Schroeder once again showed his independence and impartiality, openly stating that the war was a direct result of the eastward expansion of the United States and NATO, an act that squeezed Russia's space, created panic in Eastern Europe, and in the end left the Europeans to bear the consequences.
In addition, he stressed that without Russian energy**, production activities in Germany will be seriously affected. He believes that importing gas from the United States is a waste and only wastes taxpayers' money.
Schroeder's views reflect his in-depth understanding and unique views on international affairs, and also make us more admire his impartiality and independence.
Although these words were genuinely emotional, they caused a new round of controversy in Germany. Germany's SPD has publicly urged Schroeder to show his innocence by resigning from Russia's Nord Stream project team.
However, Schroeder stood his ground, remained close to Putin, and was convinced that Russia would win the war. In today's Europe, politicians are getting younger, and they lack the foresight and courage to deal with international affairs, which makes Schröder's sophistication even more prominent.
Schroeder once predicted that the United States would decline and that the trend of multipolarization in the world was inevitable, but now Western European countries are still following the United States to contain Russia and be hostile to China, which makes people feel extremely regrettable.
The Cold War brought confrontation and confrontation to Europe, but it also produced a group of astute and decisive politicians who weighed the pros and cons between the United States and the Soviet Union and fought for the interests of their own countries.
However, with the retirement of Cold War politicians such as Schroeder and Murdoch, Europe's future is even more worrisome.