Following Italy, which was the first to sound the alarm over growing economic reliance on China, Germany has also called for reducing dependency on Chinese products. Indeed, trade ties are so strong, which could play a dirty trick on Europe's largest economy.
Germany's foreign ministry unveiled its China strategy which policymakers had labeled "de-risking." First of all, Berlin acknowledged the mounting dependence of its production chains on China. The German authorities failed to take into account the country’s strong business ties with Asia's superpower and overlooked the moment when China’s government penetrated deep into all sectors of Germany’s economy. For instance, Beijing decided to impose restrictions on the export of gallium and germanium. Given that China accounts for 60-85% of global consumption of rare earth metals, such a step could have a severe impact on the German manufacturing sector.
Against this background, the German foreign ministry expressed the need to enhance production sovereignty in such fields as medical technology, pharmaceuticals, and rare earth elements, thus becoming less dependent on Chinese supplies. At the same time, China remains an important trade and economic partner of Germany, the department noted, adding that the authorities have no intention to "impede China’s economic progress and development," but competition must be "based on fair rules."
