Germany’s China Policy: Has it Learned any Lessons from its Dependence on Russia?

What was once seen as a mutually beneficial bilateral relationship between China and Germany is being put under the microscope as Berlin considers its complex economic relationship with the People’s Republic. Germany’s coalition government is working on a new national security strategy – and also a strategy for relations with China. Berlin’s re-evaluation of its economic and foreign policy regarding Beijing comes just as China’s parliament — the National People’s Congress — will meet for the first time since China’s “Covid Zero” policy was lifted.

On March 5th, some 3,000 deputies will gather to review the government’s performance over the past year and hear how the country’s top leaders plan to jumpstart the economy and aid recovery from the pandemic and the economic slowdown. The legislature will also formally name new officials to government posts, and over the course of the week China watchers will be able to gain some insights on some of the country’s new leaders – like Li Qiang, who’s poised to become the Premier, and the new foreign minister, Qin Gang.

One of the people watching the developments in Berlin and Beijing closely is ACG Young Leader alumna Dana Heide, who served as Handelsblatt’s China correspondent for three years before moving to Berlin.

Dana Heide (2018 ACG Young Leader) has been the Handelsblatt’s capital correspondent in Berlin since the summer of 2022. Before that, she was Handelsblatt’s China correspondent in Beijing for three years. After studying Economics in Bremen, she joined Handelsblatt in 2011 – and already reported from Berlin from 2015 to 2019. She covers the German Foreign Office and focuses on international relations, especially German-Chinese relations, as well as the German government’s China policy.