Why Germany finds it so laborious to deal with China | Berlin Briefing Podcast

2025 has exposed Germany’s dependence on China, as a source of rare earths and as a market and production site for its carmakers and other major industries. Berlin says it’s committed to "de-risking" the relationship. But is it serious? Or is it in too deep? As Chancellor Friedrich Merz prepares to visit Xi Jinping in early 2026, Richard Walker sat down with experts Noah Barkin and Clifford Coonan to analyze Germany’s options.

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CHAPTERS:
00:00 Dependency diagnosis
03:48 A long story of growth
05:56 Raw materials
08:31 “Liberation Day”
13:41 Export controls
15:38 Rare earth “general licenses”
17:17 China’s sluggish economy
19:34 A changing relationship
21:41 Chinese-built VW cars?
24:07 German deindustrialization
26:12 A German Donald Trump?
27:43 Less welcome guests
28:49 Detox-strategy
31:23 Words vs. actions
32:58 Can the EU help?
34:23 Merz’ hands-off approach
36:38 The Taiwan contingency
42:36 India as a substitute?
45:10 Merz’ message to companies
46:02 Outro

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