When Katherina Reiche of the center-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU), took over from her predecessor, Robert Habeck of the Green Party, as the new Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy, she had warm words for him. That was surprising. During Germany's recent federal election campaign, Habeck had been flooded with criticism from conservative politicians. The head of the conservative Christian Social Union (CSU), Markus Söder, for example, repeatedly complained about the "worst economics minister of all time."

Reiche's view differed. She recalled how Habeck had managed the post-pandemic energy crisis, after Russia began its war of aggression against Ukraine, in the spring of 2022: "I would like to thank you for that almost superhuman achievement," Reiche said. Habeck contributed to "this country getting through this crisis," even with his unpopular policy decisions. The Ministry of Economic Affairs staff responded with prolonged applause, and Habeck was visibly moved.

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In the meantime, Reiche is working towards amending Habeck's most important law: the "

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