German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier and his Chinese counterpart Yang Jiechi held bilateral talks in Berlin on Tuesday, a signal that bilateral ties are moving back in track after Chancellor Angela Merkel's meeting with the Dalai Lama last September severely impaired the relations.

The Sino-German ties fell into difficulties following Merkel's meeting with the Dalai Lama, whom China viewed as a separatist and political exile engaging in activities aimed at splitting the motherland and sabotaging national unity.

Speaking to the press before their talks, Steinmeier said he was "very happy" as the meeting "is a signal that our relationship can now return to normal."

Steinmeier reiterated the German government's one-China policy, urging both sides to take an attitude of being "forward-looking" in handling bilateral relations.

He also called on both sides to continue rebuilding mutual trust and resuming exchange of high-level visits.

At Tuesday's meeting with Steinmeier, Yang said as long as China and Germany adhere to the principle of mutual respect, equality and mutual non-interference in each other's internal affairs, respect and understand each other's major concerns, China-German ties would see steady and healthy expansion.

Yang revealed that he and Steinmeier had exchanged views for several times in order to resolve the problems in the bilateral relations.

According to sources from the Chinese embassy in Germany, the two ministers had exchanged letters to explore way out of the difficulties in the bilateral ties.

According to Yang, the German side had made it clear that it would continue to firmly adhere to one-China policy, recognize that Taiwan and Tibet are parts of Chinese territory, firmly oppose Taiwan's "referendum on UN membership" and would not support or encourage any attempt to seek Tibet's independence.

"We appreciate that very much," Yang said.

According to Chinese diplomats, during the talks, Yang urged the German side to honor its commitments, so as to avoid "unnecessary disturbance" in developing bilateral ties.

Yang said the Chinese side is willing to join hands with the German side to unveil a new page for the bilateral relations in the new year.

During the talks, the ministers also discussed major international issues including the Iran nuclear program.

The two ministers met on the sidelines of a six-nation foreign ministers' meeting on the Iran nuclear issue held later Tuesday in Berlin.

China has said it attaches great importance to the relations with Germany and urged Berlin to take effective measures to mend the Sino-German ties.

In dealing with the Sino-German ties, Germany should also take into consideration the EU-China relations, the Chinese government said.

"As a country that holds such a vital position and plays such a key role, Germany, in dealing with the Sino-German ties, should not only take the common interests of both countries into consideration, but also think over the overall ties between China and the EU," Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao told a news briefing last month.

The German government has recently expressed the view that it attaches great importance to developing relationship with China.

At a press conference in Berlin last week, Chancellor Merkel told reporters that Germany is "perfectly ready to continue the sound relations with China on both economic and political levels."

She also revealed a plan to visit China in October during the Asia Europe Meeting (ASEM), and wished a success for the 2008 Olympic Games.

The two countries have to rely on each other when it comes to international cooperation, said the German leader.

Merkel's meeting with the Dalai Lama last September drew opposition from the Social Democratic Party (SPD), the governing partner of her CDU/CSU bloc, and experts also expressed concerns over the consequences of the meeting in terms of bilateral ties.

Kurt Beck, chairman of the SPD, criticized Merkel for her meeting with the Dalai Lama and called for "engagement" with China. China is Germany's "strategic partner" that Germany can not afford to lose, he said.

Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, also a SPD member, accused Merkel of "shop window politics" in her dealings with China over the so-called human rights issues.

Eberhard Sandschneider, director of the German Council on Foreign Relations, said Merkel's meeting with the Dalai Lama was "a major mistake" and the hurt it caused to the bilateral ties may take some time to heal.

(Xinhua News Agency January 23, 2008)