ISTANBUL German Chancellor Friedrich Merz will pay an official visit to China this week, Beijing announced on Monday. Merz will pay a two-day visit beginning Wednesday at the invitation of Premier Li Qiang, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said in a statement. He will be the third top Western leader to visit China this year. In January, Canadian and British prime ministers visited China. The trips were the first in many years. Merz met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on the sidelines of the