Overview

• Ploß calls for a federally coordinated port policy modelled on the Netherlands and Belgium rather than leaving seaports solely to state control
• He proposes raising annual federal funding well above the current €38 million toward the industry and coastal states’ combined request of up to €500 million
• The coordinator stresses ports’ importance as logistical hubs for NATO troop movements and demands upgrades to bridges and access routes to support military transports
• He labels the planned replacement of Hamburg’s Köhlbrandbrücke by 2042 as unacceptably slow and urges its completion in the 2030s
• Ploß urges North German states to overcome regional rivalries and work together on a unified strategy for port development