Germany finds compromise over Chinese stake in Hamburg port

Germany's government has agreed on a compromise to allow a Chinese shipping group to take a smaller stake in the operator of the country’s biggest container terminal

Germany's government agreed on a compromise Wednesday that will allow a Chinese shipping group to take a smaller stake in the operator of the country’s biggest container terminal following concerns the deal might pose a national security risk.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz' Cabinet agreed to allow COSCO Shipping to acquire a 24.9% stake - instead of the previously planned 35% — in the Tollerort terminal of Hamburg port logistics company HHLA, German news agency dpa reported.

The question of whether Chinese participation in the port should be permitted had produced a political dispute as Germany wrestled with the consequences of its dependence on Russian natural gas.

Lawmakers from the Green party and the Free Democrats, which formed a governing coalition last year with Scholz’ Social Democrats, openly criticized the original proposal last week. Six German government ministries initially rejected it on the grounds that COSCO, already the port’s biggest customer, could get too much leverage.

Scholz, who is set to travel to China early next month with a delegation of German business representatives, was in favor of COSCO's participation in an HHLA deal, German media reported.

Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock had argued that Berlin needed to avoid repeating with China the mistakes it made with Russia. German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier also warned against becoming too dependent on China.

“We have to learn lessons and learning the lesson means we have to reduce unilateral dependencies wherever possible, and that applies to China in particular,” Steinmeier told public broadcaster ARD during a Tuesday visit to Ukraine.

German intelligence agencies said earlier this month that China's financial might could become a risk for Germany, particularly because of the strong economic and scientific ties between the two countries.

At a hearing with lawmakers, the head of Germany’s domestic intelligence agency, Thomas Haldenwang, made a comparison with the current geopolitical turmoil from the war in Ukraine, saying that “Russia is the storm, China is climate change.”