The German Green Party’s co-leader, Franziska Brantner, is publicly pressing Vice Chancellor Lars Klingbeil to adopt a significantly tougher stance on unfair Chinese trade practices during his ongoing visit to Beijing. Brantner’s remarks, published in the Funke-Mediengruppe newspapers, highlight a growing internal debate within the German government regarding its China policy and the escalating concerns surrounding economic competition.
Brantner asserted that Europe’s substantial consumer market-boasting 450 million inhabitants-holds significant leverage with China, a factor often overlooked in discussions predominantly focused on the United States. She proposed leveraging this European power, suggesting, “If your markets are closed to us, then ours are closed to you”. This conditional approach aims to incentivize China to grant reciprocal access for European goods and services.
Beyond market access, Brantner emphasized the necessity of curtailing the influx of inexpensive Chinese products failing to meet European safety and quality standards. She explicitly challenged Klingbeil, a key figure in the ruling coalition, to communicate these concerns directly and unambiguously to Chinese officials. Her call aligns with escalating anxieties regarding the disruptive impact of platforms like Temu and Shein, which she described as a “genuine threat” to the German retail sector.
While acknowledging Klingbeil’s recent negotiations in Brussels, which secured agreement for tariffs to apply to packages under €150, Brantner criticized the implementation timeline – set for 2028 – deeming it insufficient. “By then, the retail sector will be decimated” she stated, arguing that immediate and robust support for German and European businesses is crucial to withstand the current wave of Chinese competition.
Brantner’s critique underscores a widening gap regarding the perceived urgency within the Green Party and a broader portion of German industry. It represents a pressure point for the ruling coalition, forcing a public reckoning with the long-term consequences of unchecked Chinese economic influence and the potential need for significantly altered strategies to protect domestic businesses and ensure a level playing field. The coming weeks will likely reveal how deeply the coalition intends to address these increasingly urgent economic concerns.
