The German government has become divided over a deal, agreed last month, which saw Chinese conglomerate Cosco invest in the Port of Hamburg. The deal had been in the works since September 2021 and was championed by the chancellor (and Hamburg’s former mayor), Olaf Scholz.
Scholz’s coalition partners have been vocal in criticising the deal. Chief among them is Robert Habeck, Greens member and Scholz’s economics minister, who expressed his fear that Germany was becoming dependent on Chinese business. Fellow Green and Scholz’s foreign minister, Annalena Baerbock, has also publicly briefed against Scholz and called for an entirely new China policy.
Even worse for Scholz is that his government’s concerns are shared by German business. One of the sector’s biggest lobbies has expressed anger over Germany’s economic relationship with China. In an attempt to ward off this anger, Scholz has been forced to publicly insist that Germany will not become reliant on Chinese business.
