Many of the recent debates about Chinese takeovers and investments in Europe have been conducted in the opaque language of security. Spooks in Britain and Germany openly worry about the consequences of allowing Chinese groups such as Huawei into their 5G mobile networks. A recent delegation from Berlin even visited China to explore the intriguing idea of a no-spying pact.
But real concerns about these deals go far beyond public safety and defence. Last week, the German economy minister Peter Altmaier proposed transposing into law plans to allow the government to take direct equity stakes in companies in certain key sectors.
While the details remain vague, the idea is to establish a state fund that would temporarily hold shares in private companies to deter or even foil foreign takeovers. These might be targets in areas with implications for defence or security policy. But they could also include other strategic sectors that Germany wishes to nurture. After all, Mr Altmaier is no stranger to the delights of industrial strategy. Last month, with his French counterpart Bruno Le Maire, he unveiled a joint manifesto on such a policy. This proposed a focus on such perceived high-value areas as artificial intelligence and the production of battery cells.