The relations between the People's Republic of China and the Federal Republic of Germany made good progress in 2010. The two sides maintained close high-level contacts and deepened exchanges and cooperation between parliaments, political parties and localities, and in science, education, culture, law, military and other fields.

The two countries had frequent high-level exchanges. On 13 April, President Hu Jintao met with Chancellor Angela Merkel on the sidelines of the Nuclear Security Summit held in Washington. The two sides exchanged views on bilateral ties, the Iranian nuclear issue, climate change and other issues. On 26 June, President Hu met with Chancellor Merkel during the G-20 Toronto Summit. On 1 July, President Hu sent a congratulatory message to the newly elected President Christian Wulff. On 11 November, President Hu had a brief conversation with Chancellor Merkel at the working dinner of G-20 leaders attending the Seoul Summit. On 1 April, Premier Wen Jiabao talked with Chancellor Merkel on the phone. The two sides exchanged views on bilateral ties, the global economic and financial situation, the Iranian nuclear issue, climate change and other issues. On 5 October, Premier Wen, who was in Europe for the Eighth ASEM Summit, was invited to a meeting with Chancellor Merkel in Germany. The two sides discussed bilateral ties, the RMB exchange rate and other issues, released a joint press communiqué, and decided to set up a government consultation mechanism. From 12 to 14 April, Member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee Li Changchun visited Germany. He met with President Horst Köhler and Vice Chancellor and Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle, and visited the Chinese Culture Center in Berlin. On 23 April, Vice Premier Zhang Dejiang met with Martin Winterkorn, Chairman of the Board of Management of Volkswagen AG, in Beijing. From 25 to 29 November, State Councilor Ma Kai visited Germany and attended the Fourth "Hamburg Summit: China Meets Europe".

From 14 to 15 April, President Köhler, Chancellor Merkel, and Vice Chancellor and Foreign Minister Westerwelle sent letters or notes of condolences to the Chinese side over the earthquake in Yushu, Qinghai. From 17 to 21 May, President Köhler paid a state visit to China and attended Germany's National Pavilion Day at the Shanghai World Expo. He had talks with President Hu Jintao and meetings with Premier Wen Jiabao and Vice Premier Wang Qishan. From 10 to 13 August, President Wulff and Chancellor Merkel sent letters of condolences to the Chinese side over the massive mudslide in Zhouqu, Gansu. From 15 to 18 July, Chancellor Merkel paid an official visit to China. She met with President Hu Jintao and Vice President Xi Jinping and had both expanded and restricted talks with Premier Wen Jiabao. Chancellor Merkel and Premier Wen had a joint meeting with delegates to the Second China-Germany Dialogue Forum. The two sides released a joint communiqué on advancing China-Germany strategic partnership in all respects. In this first China-Germany joint communiqué following the last one on the establishment of diplomatic ties, the two sides gave their bilateral ties the new status of "strategic partnership", agreed to upgrade their strategic dialogue and forge a partnership on energy and the environment, and proposed measures for stepping up pragmatic cooperation in military, economic, trade, energy, the environment, financial, cultural, people-to-people and other fields. The German side affirmed their active support for an early EU recognition of China's full market economy status and their readiness to work for a smooth conclusion of the China-EU Partnership and Cooperation Agreement. In addition, the two sides signed 10 government cooperation documents and commercial contracts. From 15 to 16 January, Vice Chancellor and Foreign Minister Westerwelle visited China, where he met with Premier Wen and had talks with Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi.

The two foreign ministries maintained close contact. In February, Foreign Minister Yang attended the 46th Munich Security Conference and delivered a speech entitled "A Changing China in a Changing World". During the Conference, Foreign Minister Yang met with Vice Chancellor and Foreign Minister Westerwelle and exchanged views with him on bilateral ties, the Iranian nuclear issue, climate change and other issues. In May, Vice Foreign Minister Fu Ying met with State Secretary of the Federal Foreign Office Wolf-Ruthart Born, who was accompanying President Köhler on a visit to China. Also in May, Vice Foreign Minister Fu met with Minister of State at the Federal Foreign Office Cornelia Pieper. In June, a delegation of young Chinese diplomats visited Germany. In July, the Eighth China-Germany Dialogue on Human Rights was held in Berlin. Foreign Minister Yang sent a letter of condolences to Vice Chancellor and Foreign Minister Westerwelle over the large casualties in a stampede at the Love Parade in Duisburg. Vice Foreign Minister Fu and State Secretary of the Federal Foreign Office Born co-chaired the Fourth China-Germany Strategic Dialogue in Berlin. In August, Vice Foreign Minister Song Tao met with State Secretary of the Federal Foreign Office Born in Berlin. In September, the 14th China-Germany Consultation on Diplomatic Policy was held in Berlin. In October, Vice Foreign Minister Fu Ying met with Minister of State at the Federal Foreign Office Werner Hoyer in Beijing. In November, Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi talked with Vice Chancellor and Foreign Minister Westerwelle on the phone and exchanged views with him on bilateral relations and the situation on the Korean Peninsula.

Business ties between the two countries surpassed the level prior to the international financial crisis and contributed significantly to the economic stability and growth of their respective regions and the world at large. China became Germany's largest non-EU trading partner. Vice Commerce Minister Gao Hucheng visited Germany and exchanged views with the German side on the commercial agreements to be signed during Chancellor Merkel's visit to China. In July, Vice Commerce Minister Jiang Yaoping met with State Secretary at the Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology Bernd Pfaffenbach, who was accompanying Chancellor Merkel on a visit to China. In September, Vice Commerce Minister Jiang visited Germany. In October, Federal Minister of Economics and Technology Rainer Bruderle visited China.

The two countries carried out close parliamentary and inter-party exchanges. In October, President of the Bundesrat Jens Bohrnsen visited China. He met with NPC Chairman Wu Bangguo and held talks with CPPCC Chairman Jia Qinglin. In March, Co-Chair of the Green Party Cem Ozdemir visited China. In April, Foreign Policy Spokesman of the CDU/CSU Parliamentary Group Philipp Mißfelder visited China. In June, CPPCC Vice Chairman Zhen Wantong visited Germany. The International Department of the CPC Central Committee and the Körber Foundation jointly sponsored in China the Bergedorf Round Table - Beijing Forum with the theme of "Global Governance: How Can China and Europe Cooperate".

Cooperation in science, education, culture, law, military, and youth and local exchanges proceeded smoothly. In March, Tenzin Lundrup, Deputy Director of the Social and Economics Institute under the China Tibetology Research Center led a Tibetologist delegation to Germany. In April, Vice Education Minister Lu Xin attended the Fifth China-Germany Dialogue on Education Policy in Germany. Federal Environment Minister Norbert Röttgen and State Premier of Bavaria Horst Seehofer visited China. In May, CPPCC Vice Chairman and Minister of Science and Technology Wan Gang visited Germany. Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Federal Armed Forces General Johann-Georg Dora visited China. In June, Vice Education Minister Hao Ping visited Germany. In July, the Second China-Germany Dialogue Forum had its first meeting in Beijing. Commander of the PLA Air Force General Xu Qiliang visited Germany. State Premier of Lower Saxony David McAllister visited China. In October, Federal Minister of Transport, Building and Urban Development Peter Ramsauer and State Premier of Rhineland-Palatinate Kurt Beck visited China. In November, Federal Minister of Defense Karl-Theodor Freiherr zu Guttenberg visited China. He met with Xi Jinping, Vice Chairman of the CPC Central Military Commission and Vice President, and held talks with General Liang Guanglie, Member of the CPC Central Military Commission, State Councilor and Defense Minister, and General Chen Bingde, Member of the CPC Central Military Commission and Chief of the PLA General Staff. Also in November, General Chang Wanquan, Member of the CPC Central Military Commission and Director of the PLA General Armaments Department, and Wan Gang, CPPCC Vice Chairman and Minister of Science and Technology, visited Germany on separate occasions. The International Department of the CPC Central Committee, the Chinese Association for International Understanding, and the Friedrich Ebert Foundation jointly held the Ninth China-Germany Comprehensive Security Dialogue in Beijing. The 10th China-Germany Rule of Law Dialogue was held in Berlin.

At the end of 2010, there were 63 pairs of sister provinces/states and cities between the two countries.