German Policy Towards China

The article is devoted to Germany's policy towards China. China displaced Germany from its first place in the world in terms of exports of goods in 2008. The late 2000s marked the lowest point in relations between Germany and China. Nevertheless, in the 2010s, the German government, understandi...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Fedor Basov
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Russian Academy of Sciences, Institute of Europe 2025-04-01
Series:Современная Европа
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.sov-europe.ru/images/pdf/2025/2-2025/Basov-2-2025.pdf
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1849427707943714816
author Fedor Basov
author_facet Fedor Basov
author_sort Fedor Basov
collection DOAJ
description The article is devoted to Germany's policy towards China. China displaced Germany from its first place in the world in terms of exports of goods in 2008. The late 2000s marked the lowest point in relations between Germany and China. Nevertheless, in the 2010s, the German government, understanding the economic potential of relations with China, promoted the development and strengthening of relations with China, defining them as a “strategic partnership”. Such a turn in German policy occurred under the same chancellor – A. Merkel. However, the risks associated with Germany's dependence on Chinese strategic materials supplies, the espionage possibility, as well as different positions on anti-Russian sanctions made the Olaf Scholz government approach towards China tougher than the “strategic partnership” policy under A. Merkel. The article analyzes the evolution of German policy towards China, the approaches of various political powers in Germany to China, as well as the measures of the German government for “de-risking” China policy. The author gives an answer to the question whether “strategic partnership” between Germany and China in the 2010s corresponds the actual situation. Conclusions are drawn about the impact of various factors on German policy towards China, including the government, political parties, and interest groups, as well as the complexity of international relations.
format Article
id doaj-art-b963b607ce034a9bbc7a378fe1a794c0
institution Kabale University
issn 0201-7083
language English
publishDate 2025-04-01
publisher Russian Academy of Sciences, Institute of Europe
record_format Article
series Современная Европа
spelling doaj-art-b963b607ce034a9bbc7a378fe1a794c02025-08-20T03:28:56ZengRussian Academy of Sciences, Institute of EuropeСовременная Европа0201-70832025-04-012182810.31857/S0201708325020020German Policy Towards ChinaFedor Basov0Primakov National Research Institute of World Economy and International Relations Russian Academy of SciencesThe article is devoted to Germany's policy towards China. China displaced Germany from its first place in the world in terms of exports of goods in 2008. The late 2000s marked the lowest point in relations between Germany and China. Nevertheless, in the 2010s, the German government, understanding the economic potential of relations with China, promoted the development and strengthening of relations with China, defining them as a “strategic partnership”. Such a turn in German policy occurred under the same chancellor – A. Merkel. However, the risks associated with Germany's dependence on Chinese strategic materials supplies, the espionage possibility, as well as different positions on anti-Russian sanctions made the Olaf Scholz government approach towards China tougher than the “strategic partnership” policy under A. Merkel. The article analyzes the evolution of German policy towards China, the approaches of various political powers in Germany to China, as well as the measures of the German government for “de-risking” China policy. The author gives an answer to the question whether “strategic partnership” between Germany and China in the 2010s corresponds the actual situation. Conclusions are drawn about the impact of various factors on German policy towards China, including the government, political parties, and interest groups, as well as the complexity of international relations.http://www.sov-europe.ru/images/pdf/2025/2-2025/Basov-2-2025.pdfgermanypeople`s republic of china (prc)olaf scholzangela merkelinvestments
spellingShingle Fedor Basov
German Policy Towards China
Современная Европа
germany
people`s republic of china (prc)
olaf scholz
angela merkel
investments
title German Policy Towards China
title_full German Policy Towards China
title_fullStr German Policy Towards China
title_full_unstemmed German Policy Towards China
title_short German Policy Towards China
title_sort german policy towards china
topic germany
people`s republic of china (prc)
olaf scholz
angela merkel
investments
url http://www.sov-europe.ru/images/pdf/2025/2-2025/Basov-2-2025.pdf
work_keys_str_mv AT fedorbasov germanpolicytowardschina