DISINFO: German car industry collapsing due to sanctions on Russia and expensive gas
SUMMARY
Once the pride of Germany, the country’s automotive industry is fast becoming a source of national shame. All because German leaders have decided to follow policies that go contrary to national interest, such as sanctions on Russia and the refusal to rely on cheap Russian gas.
At a recent Bundestag hearing it was pointed out that an industry offering 900,000 well-paid jobs, generating patents, driving innovation, and strongly contributing to Germany’s export volumes was on the brink of collapse and the federal government was unwilling to save it.
RESPONSE
Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative painting EU sanctions on Russia as backfiring, and the supposed disastrous consequences of European countries' decreasing reliance on Russian gas.
Although the German car industry's manufacturing output has declined from a peak in the 2010s, the decline predates Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine and the resulting sanctions by roughly two years. In fact, German car production has experienced fluctuating, yet overall steady growth since early 2022.
The Bundestag hearing referred to in the segment took place on 1 December 2023, and focused on the fairly narrow issue of electric cars and other carbon-neutral means of transport. The hearing was not concerned with the sales of vehicles running on conventional fossil fuels, and did not once mention sanctions or their supposed effect on German industrial capacity.
See similar cases such as Germany acts like a kamikaze pilot as its sanctions are strengthening Russia and World Bank says Russia is the world’s 5th largest economy leaving Germany behind EU.