UPDATE - 'Absurd': China protests Germany calling Xi 'dictator'

UPDATES WITH GERMAN FOREIGN MINISTER BAERBOCK’S COMMENT ON CHINA’S REACTION

By Alperen Aktas

ISTANBUL (AA) – China on Monday condemned Germany for calling Chinese President Xi Jinping a “dictator,” calling it “absurd.”

Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said: “China strongly disapproves of and firmly opposes the remarks made by the German foreign minister regarding Chinese leader,” Beijing-based Global Times reported.

“The remarks made by the German side were utterly absurd. Such comments gravely infringe upon China's political dignity and amount to an open political provocation,” she said at a news conference in Beijing.

She added: “China has lodged a serious representation with Germany through diplomatic channels.”

Last week, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said in an interview: "If (Russian President Vladimir) Putin were to win this war, what sign would that be for other dictators in the world, like Xi (Jinping) like the Chinese president?"

Baerbock, whose Greens party is a junior partner in the German coalition government, has long been an outspoken critic of China and repeatedly criticized Beijing’s foreign and domestic policies, and its treatment of Uyghurs.

On Monday, during a news conference in New York, Baerbock gave a guarded response when asked about China’s strong condemnation.

“I have taken note of it,” Baerbock told reporters and gave no further comment.