Germany's Unprecedented Push to Fix Diesel Disrupted by Protests
- Carmakers to hammer out deal to stave off city driving bans
- Government seeks to shake image of chummy industry relations
German Automakers Summit Seeks Diesel Solution
Protests forced a last-minute change of venue for emergency diesel talks between the German government and the country’s auto industry, highlighting the tensions surrounding efforts to salvage the beleaguered technology after nearly two years of crisis.
At an unprecedented summit in Berlin, participants shifted about one mile to the more secured Interior Ministry after Greenpeace and other protesters descended on the Transport Ministry, where the chief executives of Volkswagen AG, Daimler AG and BMW AG had been summoned to face off with ministers and state leaders. The participants are seeking to hash out a future for diesel despite the steady drumbeat of negative news and concerns about air pollution.