After AfD Victory in Saxony-Anhalt, German Seaports Warn Against Freezing Reforms

Germany’s seaport operators are warning Berlin not to respond to the AfD’s election result in Saxony-Anhalt by putting planned reforms on hold. The German Seaport Companies Association, known as ZDS, says the answer must be greater economic and governmental capacity to act, not less change.

“If we freeze reforms before they have even begun, we confirm those who claim that Germany can no longer solve its problems,” ZDS chief executive Florian Keisinger said.

The association argues that political extremes gain strength when people widely feel that Germany has passed the peak of its economic success and that the state can no longer address the country’s central problems. German seaports, it says, have a particularly important role because they represent an open, internationally connected economy.

The ZDS says the ports connect German industry with global markets, secure energy supplies and supply chains, and remain essential to Germany’s defense capability. It is calling for a permanently adequate federal contribution to port financing and for the special fund to be used consistently to modernize port infrastructure.

Planning and approval procedures for critical infrastructure should be significantly faster, the association says, with the same approach applied to ports as to roads, railways and energy infrastructure. It also wants national and European regulations systematically assessed for their economic effects, with fewer reporting duties, quicker procedures and more room for companies to act. The federal government should enable investment in digitalization, automation, alternative energy sources and new energy infrastructure, while strengthening the physical and digital security of seaports as critical infrastructure.

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If we freeze reforms before they have even begun, we confirm those who claim that Germany can no longer solve its problems.