When German Chancellor Olaf Scholz visited China in April, the deep and enduring divisions between Europe and the United States over how best to handle the country were on full display. Although new communication channels between Washington and Beijing have stabilized a superpower relationship that only last year seemed in danger of spinning out of control, the U.S. approach remains basically competitive.
Scholz’s approach was markedly different—and not in a good way. This was obvious from the moment that details of his delegation emerged. There are senior figures in Germany with a hard-headed, strategic view of China, not least Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck and Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock. But neither was in Beijing. Instead, Scholz took ministers in areas such as agriculture, who favor close cooperation with Beijing, along with a bevy of industrial CEOs promoting Sino-German trade and investment.
