In October 1933, Seeckt arrived in China to head the German military mission.[85] At the time of his arrival, Sino-German relations were in a bad state owing to the racial arrogance of the Germans, and Chiang was considering firing the Germans and bringing in a French military mission.[85] In order to save the military mission, Seeckt ordered the German officers to behave with more tact towards the Chinese and to start showing some respect for Chinese sensibilities.[85] In this way, Seeckt saved Germany's position in China.[85]