Berlin In view of the geopolitical changes, the federal government has decided on a national security strategy for the first time. One of the central points is the realignment of the relationship with China. “We don’t want decoupling, we want derisking,” said Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) on Wednesday in Berlin. The security of trade and supply chains is a central goal, emphasized Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens).
After 15 months of deliberations, the cabinet had decided on the more than 70-page concept, in which all security-related topics from the equipment of the Bundeswehr to the fight against climate change and civil protection are linked.
With less than a week to go before the Sino-German intergovernmental consultations, the government emphasizes that “elements of rivalry and competition have increased in recent years”. China is a partner, but the economy is being asked to position itself more broadly in order to reduce dependencies on authoritarian states.
The Chancellery and Foreign Ministry could not agree on the establishment of a National Security Council, a central control point in major crises. Experts criticize that. “But we need one like that,” said Wolfgang Ischinger, the former head of the Munich Security Conference, to the Handelsblatt. Ischinger fears that each ministry will insist on its own responsibilities.
A chancellor and four ministers – not since 1978 have so many high-ranking political figures attended the federal press conference as this Wednesday. The archives of the organization run by journalists date back to that time. But, according to Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD), with the adoption of the first national security strategy in the history of the federal government, an “unusual decision” was made.
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With a delay of several months – the coalition had actually set itself the goal of having the national security strategy in place within the first year of government – the federal government adopted the first foreign and security policy document of this kind on Wednesday.
In addition to Scholz, Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens), who is responsible for the strategy, Interior Minister Nancy Faeser and Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (both SPD) and Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP) were also represented at the press conference.
Federal cabinet adopts first national security strategy for Germany
Integrated security is at the heart of the 76-page strategy. The cumbersome term hides the fact that Germany’s security does not only depend on being able to fend off military attacks with armed force. “Security means not being spied on by China when chatting with friends,” Baerbock said. However, safety also means having clean water “in the morning when you shower”.
Many topics are therefore touched upon in the strategy – internal security, defence, cyber security, but also civil protection and securing the supply of raw materials. According to Lindner, Germany’s security needs a “360-degree perspective”. The strategy is also aimed at companies, emphasized Baerbock.
With the paper, the federal government also wants to reduce dependence on autocratic countries such as Russia or China. At the same time, the Federal Foreign Office has developed an implementation strategy for its own office. The four-page paper is available to the Handelsblatt.
Three factors, it says, would shape international politics for the “foreseeable future”: “Russia’s revanchist aggressiveness, the systemic rivalry with states that question the foundations of the international order, and the climate crisis with the upheavals it has triggered,” can be read there. China itself is not mentioned in the list, but it should be clear that the People’s Republic is meant.
China as a partner and systematic rival
The security strategy is 76 pages long – significantly longer than that of the USA. Nonetheless, the conflict that experts consider to be one of the greatest threats to world peace at the moment is not mentioned once: the Taiwan conflict. China considers the island part of its territory, although it has never been part of the People’s Republic founded in 1949.
In recent years, China has flown more and more military maneuvers in the region, and recently there have been several near-collision between American and Chinese military in the South China Sea.
The passages on China are manageable – the country is only mentioned six times. But at least: The federal government has taken into account the changed situation under the autocratic head of state and party leader Xi Jinping and formulated the description of China much more critically than in the coalition agreement.
According to the National Security Strategy, China is a partner, competitor and systemic rival. The addition that follows is decisive: “We see that the elements of rivalry and competition have increased in recent years.” However, the critical formulation is already put into perspective in the next sentence, where it says: “At the same time, China remains a partner without whom many of the most pressing global challenges cannot be solved.”
The tightening of the description of China as a system rival and competitor comes just a few days before the German-Chinese government consultations, which China’s Prime Minister Li Qiang, among others, is expected to attend next week in Berlin.
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Not decoupling, but derisking
Also with regard to the tasks for German companies resulting from the strategy, China is not explicitly mentioned as the elephant in the room. However, it is becoming clear in several places that the economy should position itself more broadly.
Because China is using its economic power “in a targeted manner to achieve political goals,” the strategy states very clearly for the first time. “The federal government will strengthen raw material and energy security through diversification and increase the resilience of our economic and financial system,” says the policy document.
The federal government is making a clear request to companies: “In an open economy, state and private actors must assume responsibility for security policy.” However, the federal government once again made it clear that there should be no complete decoupling from China. “We don’t want decoupling, we want derisking,” emphasized Scholz.
As has already become known, the two percent target for armaments spending in Germany agreed with NATO is also anchored in the policy document. “Initially, through the newly created Bundeswehr special fund, we will make our two percent GDP contribution to the NATO capability goals on average over several years,” it says. Experts criticized this vague wording even before it became apparent.
Defense Minister Pistorius, however, played it down. “It is clear to everyone that if the special fund is used up in 2028”, then “a path must be found to achieve the two percent with other means”. The goal of spending two percent of economic output on defense will also apply in the 2030s, Scholz promised.
We can be very proud of this strategy. Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock
No National Security Council
In the course of the process, the coalition rejected the idea of a National Security Council because the Chancellery and Foreign Ministry could not agree on the structure. Baerbock defended herself against criticism on Wednesday that this project, which she had proposed and which the FDP also wanted, had not made it into the strategy.
During the Ukraine war, the Chancellor invited to a security cabinet, which then also met. “During the process we found out: man, that’s a great thing.” It has been shown that you can come together and make decisions in a spirit of trust in critical moments, said Baerbock.
The opposition strongly criticized the strategy’s lack of a National Security Council. All in all, the strategy is “bloodless in terms of content, strategically irrelevant, operationally inconsequential and foreign policy uncoordinated,” said Union faction leader Friedrich Merz.
Cyber threats
The security strategy has identified a significant increase in cyber attacks. However, the paper excludes a defensive measure that has been much discussed in the past. This refers to cyber counterattacks – so-called hackbacks. According to the paper, these are “in principle” rejected as a means of cyber defence. Instead, the government announces that it will develop the necessary defensive capabilities while “respecting the principle of proportionality”.
The aim is also to amend the Basic Law on cyber security in order to give the federal government more powers “to avert danger in the event of serious cyber attacks from Germany and abroad”. This would require a two-thirds majority in the Bundestag and Bundesrat. Specifically, the cyber security authority BSI is to be expanded to become the central office for the fight against cyber attacks on targets in Germany.
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The strategy does not go far enough for the digital economy. The national security strategy falls “well short of expectations and requirements,” said Bernhard Rohleder, CEO of the digital association Bitkom. Cyberspace is neglected too much.
Sensitive infrastructure areas
For better protection of the critical infrastructure (Kritis), the government is aiming for a so-called Kritis umbrella law. The key points that have already been submitted state that the state should assume greater responsibility here. In concrete terms, cooperation between the federal and state levels as well as with the private sector is to be improved. The green urge to hurry. They are demanding that Interior Minister Faeser finally present the announced law.
Critical infrastructure includes facilities from the energy, transport, water, food, state and administration, health, information technology and telecommunications sectors. “Our critical infrastructures are increasingly the target of significant threats and disruptions,” says the strategy.
When it comes to protecting German telecommunications networks, however, the statements in the paper are vague. The problems of the Chinese network suppliers Huawei and ZTE are not mentioned. The government is striving – also for fear of espionage – to ban the use of these companies’ technologies from the 5G network. A final decision on this should be made in the summer.
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