German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has defended a Chinese company’s controversial investment in a container terminal in the port city of Hamburg, hailing it as the «right solution.»
The German government on Wednesday authorized the Chinese shipping company Cosco’s nearly 25 percent stake in one of the port’s terminals, a decision that has drawn criticism at a time when Berlin has opted to review its economic relationship with Beijing to avoid dependence on the Asian giant.
Speaking to the press from the Greek capital, Athens, where he met with the country’s prime minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Scholz has argued that the decision of the Executive is along the right lines because the percentage of investment allowed to the Chinese company is relatively small.
It is true that the Chancellor has recognized the legitimate concern of those who consider that German infrastructures should not be under external influence, although he has defended that this «is by no means the case in this instance».
Scholz, who is planning to travel to China, has recently advocated reducing Germany’s dependence on the Asian giant in order to avoid the recurrence of a situation like the one experienced with Russia and the subjugation to a large part of the European powers in energy matters.
