Federal Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP) has criticized the US economic policy with regard to the US anti-inflation law.
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Washington is pursuing an enormously protectionist economic policy, criticized the finance minister. However, since the German economy is closely linked to the American market, Berlin must rely on economic diplomacy in this dispute.
BUnited States Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP) has criticized the US economic policy with regard to the US anti-inflation law – and at the same time warned against a trade war with the United States. “The USA is our value partner, but at the same time there is an enormously protectionist economic policy,” Lindner told the newspaper Welt am Sonntag. That is why the federal government must represent German interests in Washington and point out the negative consequences for the Federal Republic. Unlike the French economy, however, the German economy is closely linked to the American market. “Therefore, Germany cannot have any interest in a trade war, but must rely on economic diplomacy,” Lindner continued.
The US inflation control law provides for billions in investments in climate protection. Subsidies and tax credits are tied to companies using US products or manufacturing in the US. There is much criticism of this in Europe. French President Emmanuel Macron also raised the issue during his state visit to the United States. He warned that the law would create such disparities that many companies would no longer invest in Europe – threatening to divide the West.
Lindner, on the other hand, advocates taking the law as an opportunity “to improve our competitiveness. If you look at it clearly, you have to realize that constantly increasing EU demands on the economy in connection with energy prices are just as dangerous as the distortion of competition in the USA”. Federal Economics Minister Robert Habeck (Greens) had announced a “robust response” by the European Union to the US law.
