Scholz in China: state visit in the crown bubble

China is actually sticking to its zero-Covid strategy – and then comes Olaf Scholz. So the balance between the policy of the crown and the state visit must be successful. This means: many conditions, not only for the chancellor.

As soon as the Chancellor’s plane has landed at the Beijing capital airport, the white Air Force Airbus with the black, red and gold side stripes must take off again. The flight continues to South Korea for the pilot and crew. The car is temporarily parked there, where it awaits the return journey of Olaf Scholz, the sales delegation and the accompanying press. Another troupe will come up in the evening and pick up the chancellor in Beijing again.

It is one of the many peculiarities of the Chancellor’s inaugural visit to China. It’s been a good three years since your predecessor visited the country. Then came the crown pandemic and with it the rigid no Covid strategy that China is pursuing.

PCR test still at the airport

Two days before departure, the journalists traveling with them had to carry out a first PCR test and 24 hours later the second. Even before Scholz leaves the car, he has to undergo another test.

The buses stop on the asphalt for the group traveling with them, converted into PCR sampling stations. Smudging is done by staff in full white overalls, the so-called “Hazmat Suites”. Only then can the column move towards the state pension. So you have to wait for the test results.

This also has consequences for reporting. Only a handful of reporters can attend Scholz’s meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Everyone else does not have the opportunity to get an idea of ​​what the joint looks like.

Short trip for quarantine needs

The Chancellor’s visit is really just a short journey: just eleven hours on the spot, not a single overnight stay despite the long journey to and from the destination with an overall flight time of well over 20 hours. This is also due to the restrictions of the crown, which actually require quarantine.

To avoid this, the Chancellor’s group is strictly shielded and forms their own “bubble crown”, so to speak. But it also means that anyone who enters this bubble on the Chinese side must then go into quarantine.