A German government minister implicitly rebuked German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s China policy on Sunday. More than that, the minister attacked the European Union’s strategy toward Beijing.

Writing for Der Spiegel, Germany’s most influential magazine, Michael Roth, the German government minister for Europe, called for a tougher approach to Beijing. While Roth is a member of the center-left Social Democratic Party, he is also a member of Merkel’s coalition government. His words carry weight both of influence and real political power.