The German government says Chancellor Olaf Scholz will visit China for talks with Chinese President Xi and other senior officials.

A government spokesperson told reporters on Monday that the chancellor will leave for the three-day visit on Saturday.

He is expected to hold talks with Xi Jinping in the capital, Beijing, next Tuesday. He will also visit the cities of Chongqing and Shanghai.

It will be Scholz's second visit to China and the first since November 2022. He will be accompanied by three ministers.

The spokesperson said major items on the agenda will include responses to Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the situation in the South China Sea.

China is Germany's largest trading partner. But Berlin intends to reduce its dependence on the country based on lessons learned from its reliance on Russian natural gas and other energy resources.

The visit comes as China is opposing an investigation by the European Union into electric vehicles imports from the country. Beijing is concerned that the probe could lead to additional tariffs on Chinese EVs.

The German spokesperson said Scholz is generally skeptical about the protective tariffs.

German businesses, mainly large companies, still see Germany-China relations as important.