HAMBURG, Germany -- The German foreign ministry is poised to send a paper to other government departments urging them to regard China as a "systemic rival," as the new Olaf Scholz administration breaks with longtime Chancellor Angela Merkel's nonconfrontational approach.
The ministry's plan, confirmed to Nikkei Asia by high-ranking German politicians, would make official key China-related points in a coalition agreement Germany's three ruling parties signed after their election win over Merkel's Christian Democratic Union last September, much to Beijing's displeasure.
