 Good afternoon. Good morning in the United States and good evening in Asia. It's a great pleasure and honor to welcome the new Federal Chancellor of Germany, Olaf Scholz. Mr. Chancellor, you can imagine this great interest to listen to you at this traditional Davos agenda week. We're at the beginning of the year. We try to provide a state of the world message and also define the priorities for the months ahead in 2022. And you play a particularly important role this year, not only as the Federal Chancellor of Germany, but also as the Chairman of the G7 community. Mr. Chancellor, you have started your mandate with extremely ambitious, but in my opinion also realistic, transformation program. And I should add a necessary transformation program for Germany, mainly with the pillars of decarbonization with very ambitious objectives already for 2030. And also, of course, the digitalization of the German economy. As I mentioned, you have at the same time the responsibility for the G7 and you have started under, I would say, certain difficult circumstances. I refer, of course, to the political situation, particularly related to what we see now in Europe, in Ukraine, and also with the burden of moving Germany out of the COVID-19 crisis. So a lot to be discussed, Mr. Chancellor, the floor is yours. Professor Schwab, lieber Klaus, ladies and gentlemen, I'm sure most of us would have wished for a different start to this year. COVID has been with us for two whole years now and we are still struggling with the pandemic. Our digital meeting today is proof of that. So obviously I can't avoid mentioning COVID in my remarks, but I will try something that Germans are not particularly famous for, being optimistic. And combined with the inevitable dose of German caution, I hope to give you a realistic assessment of both the opportunities and the challenges that we are facing. And hopefully some ideas on how to deal with them. Working together, restoring trust. That is the motto you have chosen for this year's annual meeting, Klaus. And indeed, it is also a good starting point for our exchange today. So let me begin with working together. The last couple of weeks, my first weeks in my new office, have urgently reminded us just how important international cooperation, political exchange and dialogue are. Take the intensive talks we have been engaging in with Russia since the beginning of January. It is still too early to tell whether they will help de-escalate the situation Russia created by concentrating 100,000 troops along the border with Ukraine. But after years of rising tensions, staying silent is not a sensible option. That is why we are talking to Moscow in a range of different formats about our commitment to Ukraine's territorial integrity and about a key principle of our common European peace order that borders must not be moved by force, that right makes might and not the other way around. The Russian side is aware of our determination. I hope they also realize that the gains of cooperation outweigh the price of further confrontation. This is the basis on which we are engaging. Because we strongly believe that global public gods can only be preserved through international cooperation and peace is the most important one of them. Closely followed by global health. One of the most uplifting statements that I have heard during the pandemic came from the Israeli historian and author Yuval Harari and I quote the big advantage humans have over viruses is that we can cooperate in ways they can't and we do. European doctors are benefiting from the findings of the American, Israeli or African counterparts. Scientists from all over the planet are sharing their research on new variants and potential treatments globally often in real time. And two German researchers invented a vaccine based on the new mRNA technology that helped save millions of lives around the world. These examples are proof of the power of cooperation. They also illustrate the importance of exchanges like the one we are having here today. It was at Davos in 2000 that leaders launched the global vaccine alliance. Today, 21 years later, vaccines are by far our best tool to leave the pandemic behind us. Without a truly global immunization campaign, we will soon run out of letters in the Greek alphabet for new variants of the virus. But the good news is thanks to a far-sighted cooperation, we have the tools to break the cycle. And Germany already the second largest donor to the global vaccine campaign will continue to do its part. By supporting COVAX, we are determined to reach 70% of the world population by the middle of the year. And as part of our current G7 presidency, we will focus on improving the international health infrastructure, including in countries of the global south. However, we need partners to join hands, particularly in the private sector. So in the spirit of Davos, let us work together to fully fund the global vaccination campaign that would also be the booster shot our economies need. As we speak, those economies are facing the most fundamental transformation since the industrial revolution. For the last 250 years, our prosperity has depended on burning fossil fuels, coal, oil and gas. The effects of man-made climate change are felt by everyone in every corner of the world. That is why Europe has decided to become the first carbon neutral continent by 2050. Germany wants to reach that goal in 2045 already. This leaves us with less than 25 years to reach net zero, a monumental task. But a task that we can and will master. We will prove wrong those who are currently portraying our continent as a billiard ball in a great geoeconomical game between China and the United States. Europe offers the openness and liberal societies that benefit innovation. We are on course towards greater technological sovereignty, a top priority of the European Commission. And the global shift towards more sustainable growth will give Europe the first mover advantage. But of course, Europe alone won't end the climate crisis. That's where the light motif of working together applies again. We will use our presidency of the G7 to turn that group into the nucleus of an international climate club. What we want to achieve is a paradigm shift in international climate policy. We will no longer wait for the slowest and least ambitious. Instead, we will lead by example and we will turn climate action from a cost factor into a competitive advantage by agreeing on joint minimum standards. Ambitious, bold and cooperative, that will be the climate club's ABC. Ambitious by committing its members to the 1.5 degree target and to climate neutrality by 2050 at the latest. Bold by ensuring that we act now to reach those goals, for instance by pricing carbon and preventing carbon leakage. And cooperative by remaining open to all countries and by respecting WTO rules. We are not looking to be an exclusive club. By addressing technology transfer and climate financing, we hope to bring developing and emerging economies on board. Let me highlight one example of how this could work. Green hydrogen. Within the climate club we want to work on a common understanding of what green hydrogen is and we will coordinate our respective investments. That is the way towards a reliable global supply. The mutual benefits are obvious for a country like Germany with a strong industrial base and high energy demands and also for those who would become the main producers of green hydrogen, namely emerging economies and developing countries. Ladies and gentlemen, Germany is committed to playing a crucial role in the global transformation. We have set sail to turn the 2020s into a new beginning, a decade of transformation and progress for our country. By 2030, 80% of our energy will come from renewables twice as much as today. This requires massive investment in our infrastructure from electricity grids to hydrogen pipelines. We will speed up planning processes and stimulate private investment in future technologies and digitalization. And we will modernize our immigration laws to attract the skilled workers, scientists and technicians that our labor market needs. However, this transformation that we are now embarking on is not an end in itself. Progress is not an end in itself. And in hindsight, we sometimes have to realize that yesterday's ideas of progress can become today's and tomorrow's problems. Think about the ecological crisis. In the end, it is a product of former ideas of progress. So what we need is better progress. Progress that isn't measured just in its short-term results, but also factors in its long-term consequences and side effects. Progress that addresses the concerns of all of our citizens. Because we know that change in the democracy only works if it is by the people and for the people. This is precisely where the second part of today's theme comes in, restoring trust. The sheer magnitude and simultaneity of globalization, digitalization and climate adaptation leaves many citizens worrying. Will their well-paid jobs move away? Will energy prices or rents in big cities continue to soar? Will pensions remain secure and health systems reliable? Leaving questions like these unanswered erodes trust. Trust in our democratic systems and their promise of equal opportunities. And trust also in our social market economy and its promise of fairness. Yes, trust can erode, but it can also be won back. A recent global survey showed that during the pandemic, public confidence in science and scientific institutions has increased. And nearly 9 out of 10 Germans, an increase over 2021, set in opinion polls that they have trust in health workers. So where does that leave us governments and businesses? First, in an age of technology, our policies and decisions must be based on science, rationality and reason. That is why my government has established an independent board of experts and scientists who advise us during the pandemic. And when their credibility is attacked by a small but loud and radical minority, it is our duty to defend them. Second, citizens demand explanations for the changes our decisions are making to their lives. If we as political or economic leaders do not explain our decisions properly, people will look for explanations elsewhere. Politics is Will, the great Swedish Prime Minister Olof Pymer once said. Will and communication, one must add in today's digital world. And finally, we must not allow technological innovation and growth to be decoupled from social progress. On the contrary, only a society of mutual respect will stay united through the apocal changes that lie ahead. Social justice and equal opportunities do not stand in the way of transformation. They are necessary preconditions that make transformation work. I know that many of you share this view and that for me is another source of optimism. Ladies and gentlemen, my hope is that we can maintain and build on that unity. Some will try to tell us that dialogue and compromise are signs of weakness. Some will try to pitch climate action against prosperity. Some will argue that social progress hampers economic growth. And some will try to divide us into cosmopolitan and regular citizens anywhere and somewhere rich and poor. But the truth is the progress we want, better progress, will only be possible if we overcome these divisions. Working together is the way restoring trust is our goal. Thank you for your attention. Thank you very much, Federal Chancellor. Very ambitious, very comprehensive, but as I mentioned, very necessary program because we are living in the age of the forced industrial revolution. We have the chance for a new renaissance if we use all those capabilities in a very responsible way. Now you mentioned many priorities which you have for your government and you put particular emphasis on the world trust. If I may add one question here, trust depends also very much from a macroeconomic stable country. How do you see macroeconomic stability in this context of what you just outlined? I see that macroeconomic stability is key for the trust into the future and this is why we have to work on our goals and all the aspects have to be followed which are important for this task. So first, we will do a lot for growth and second, we understand that this growth will only be successful and we will be going into the right direction if we understand that digitalization and fighting against climate change are important for the future. And so these are the most important aspects of our decisions we will have to take and this is why one of the first activities of the new government in Germany is to make all processes that fast and that successful that we will be able to reach our aims and our goals and this I think is the basis for a good stability in the economic development and for growth. I would agree and I would also coincide with your view that digitalization cannot be just referred to in the context of industry. It has to be public administration, it has to be the public in general, our schools and so on. If I may have another question, Mr. Chancellor, you didn't refer in your speech specifically to Europe. You made some remarks related to Europe but Germany is the strongest power inside the economic power inside the European Union. How do you want to contribute during the next four or even longer years to a stronger unification of Europe? We are working very hard for getting a better Europe, a better Union to say it like this and this is absolutely important. The world we will live in in the midst of the century will see 10 billion people living there and knowing this it is absolutely important that we cooperate within the European Union and that we are working on the necessary success. So this is one of the key tasks of the government to make Europe stronger. That this is something that could work. We saw and see during this crisis we are living in now fighting against the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic and social consequences. The European recovery program is a sign of what we can do and it should be also the idea how we could manage to solve our problems in future. If we cooperate in the different fields, may it be defence, may it be foreign policy, may it be the fight against climate change and so working on European sovereignty and cooperation is one of the key aspects of our politics. Chancellor, thank you. I would like to come back to your presidency of the G7 and you must have already an agenda I know and as you explained decarbonisation plays a big role but I think also you foresee and you mentioned it very much how the G7 could help the developing world to catch up and to have some means at its disposal to deliver its part in order to achieve as in Paris accord or even to do better. Could you share with us some of the specific ideas you have for the G7? We are very happy that we are now able to do our task in the G7 with the presidency and there are a lot of questions that are to be solved in the international community and where the G7 can play an important role. One I already mentioned it is to fight against climate change this is a global task which could not be solved just by one country so we have to cooperate but if we follow this path if we do the necessary decisions in our countries this will have impacts on our industries and our businesses so there are a lot of debates about how we can give them a certain way of support to exist and survive in a global environment that is not in any case following the same direction so the idea for getting a global cooperation within this field is this climate club I already mentioned to have a cooperation and it's open it is not closed it's open especially to the global south to the big countries in Asia that are working to follow the same goals and so I think this is one of the main topics to be discussed the second is how we can fight against the economic consequences of the crisis and especially the poorest countries and those that need support in this development development growth will be only successful and sustainable if it is something that is happening to all countries and the people all over the world so this is the second big question and obviously also the question of the global health is of importance we have to do something that it is feasible for all countries to resonate their people and so we are working very hard to make this happen Mr. Federal Chancellor, I like very much the metaphor ABC, ambitious, bold and collaborative and I was already thinking when you are mentioning it so we should use it as a theme for the annual meeting 2023 next January but I would like to come back, you mentioned that the World Economic Forum in Davos we were at the origin of cooperation related to vaccines as you know Mr. Chancellor Davos of the Forum was also at the origin of GAVI and JPEG two organizations which play a major role I know that already at the G7 and G20 last year a public initiative, a comprehensive initiative was discussed how we can deal with such risks in the future, health risks, not just related to COVID how can we prepare the world to be much more resilient so we are not unprepared or so much unprepared even new pandemic would hit the world do you have any objectives in this respect? First it is necessary to do what I already mentioned in my speech and in an earlier answer we have to make it feasible that all people in the world have a chance to be vaccinated and so I really ask all those who are able to to support the COVAX initiative and give their financial support that is necessary that we can buy the vaccines for bringing them to all those who need them and this is also that we will do our best job to make it happen that those companies successful in this field could build new plans possibly somewhere in other countries of the world and also in the global south that they could produce the vaccines for their people so this is what we are working on and then we need scientific cooperation because this is the lucky aspect of this very severe crisis that we learn that science brings us out of the situation so we have to organize global cooperation in research and development of new vaccines and health infrastructures that are good for the people all over this globe Mr. Federal Chancellor we are coming to the end of our time you know the world they could inform of course we are known for Davos but we have 50 different platforms for public private cooperation in the environmental area related to skills which are needed related to innovation and I could go on and on so maybe one last comment how can business in general you mentioned already innovation how can business in general be of support for your program what would you expect from business not only from the German business community but from the international business community to contribute to your objectives there are a lot of tasks I think would say research, investment and social cohesion are key so let the people share from the success you get from your investments and so this investment should be guided by what we call the stakeholder mentality or stakeholder capitalism and you mentioned it in your speech it should be human centered it should take care of people and it should also take care of our planet thank you very much Mr. Federal Chancellor and I hope to see you in person hopefully in the next who knows when in Davos and all our best wishes for your program which really is pioneering but we need to achieve the Paris objectives we need to reduce inequalities in the world we need to make full advantage of the force industrial revolution and I think you are on a good way to do so so thank you and congratulations