Because his comments about Chinese people, Belgians who speak French and gays placed trade between China and the European Union in danger, Germany’s European Commissioner apologized to them.
Last week, Guenther Oettinger, at a German business forum, called Chinese people “slit eyes,” made a joke about compulsory gay marriage and spoke against Belgium’s attempts to prevent a trade agreement between Canada and the EU, Reuters reported.
He issued an apology after EC President Jean-Claude Juncker called him on Wednesday. China’s Foreign Ministry did not like Oettinger’s slit-eyes remarks which the ministry said is a reflection of the “baffling sense of superiority” among politicians in the west.
Before the apology, EU Commissioner Guenther Oettinger was only willing to admit his remarks on Oct. 25 were only sloppy. The commissioner explained that he made those comments to jolt businesses out of any complacency toward competition from China. But he eventually had time to reflect on his utterances.
In his 300-word statement, the EU commissioner apology stated, “I can now see that the words I used have created bad feelings and may even have hurt people … This was not my intention and I would like to apologize for any remark that was not as respectful as it should have been.”
In delivering the wake-up call to his German and European listeners, Oettinger insisted he has great respect for the dynamics of the Chinese economy because China is a partner and a tough competitor.