Trump claims German electricity generation down due to 'radical left'

US President Donald Trump has claimed that German electricity production has shrunk considerably since 2017, blaming the alleged decline on the country's previous centre-left administration.

"Here in Europe, we've seen the fate that the radical left tried to impose on America," Trump said during a highly anticipated speech at a major gathering of world and business leaders in Switzerland.

"They tried very hard. Germany now generates 22% less electricity than it did in 2017 and it's not the current chancellor's fault. He's solving the problem," Trump told the World Economic Forum in Davos.

"He's going to do a great job, but what they did before he got there, I guess that's why he got there."

Trump is a known critic of renewable energy, which was heavily promoted by the centre-left administration of German chancellor Olaf Scholz between 2021 and 2025.

The new conservative-led government of Chancellor Friedrich Merz, which took over in May last year, has pursued a more cautious approach on the expansion of renewables, arguing that efforts should centre on reliability, supply security, affordability and cost-effectiveness.