China says it appreciates Germany's position on Taiwan and Tibet, in a sign that the two countries may be ending months of tense relations.
China's Xinhua news agency quoted a Foreign Ministry spokesman Sunday as saying the two countries recently held a series of consultations, in which both sides affirmed the importance of their relationship.
In the report, spokeswoman Jiang Yu said Germany has reaffirmed its opposition to Taiwan's bid to join the United Nations and to Tibetan independence efforts.
The German magazine "Der Spiegel" says German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier and his Chinese counterpart, Yang Jiechi, have been working behind the scenes to repair relations.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel angered Beijing in September when she received the Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama. Merkel has said she has no regrets about their meeting, despite Beijing canceling a series of bilateral exchanges in protest.
The two countries' foreign ministers are scheduled to meet Tuesday on the sidelines of talks in Berlin on Iran's nuclear enrichment program.
In a related report, China's Minister for Science and Technology, Wan Gang, told the German newspaper "Handelsblatt" that Ms. Merkel is welcome to visit Beijing at any time.
China considers the Dalai Lama to be a separatist and has rejected his call to negotiate greater autonomy for Tibet.