The Answer to Germany's China Problem

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#### Opinion | February 23rd, 2026  
  
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|  **Good morning.**  German leader Chancellor Friedrich Merz will this week become the latest major Western leader to head to Beijing this year. His visit comes at a remarkable moment in the relationship between Germany and China. Europe’s biggest economy was for years a major exporter to and investor in Chinese markets, but China’s rapid ascent in a variety of industries means it now runs a large trade surplus with Germany. In our latest opinion piece, Jörg Wuttke — a three-time president of the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China — argues Merz should seize the opportunity to fully rewire the bilateral relationship, opening Germany up to Chinese investment so that it can take advantage of its know-how and capital. “China will soon learn what Germany had to learn the hard way: continued trade surpluses are neither healthy nor sustainable,” Wuttke writes. “Hopefully, the visit of Chancellor Merz with China's leadership in Beijing will bring about a u-turn in the currently stressed relationship.” For more, please follow this link.  
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Federal Chancellor of Germany Friedrich Merz shakes hands with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi at a meeting during the Munich Security Conference, February 14, 2026. _Credit:  Chinese Foreign Ministry_  
|  **The Answer to Germany’s China Problem: Open Up** German leader Friedrich Merz has the chance to take advantage of his country’s reversal of fortunes with China, argues Jörg Wuttke in this op-ed.  
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