BERLIN (dpa-AFX) - Siemens CEO Roland Busch has warned of the consequences of populism, extremism and racism for Germany as a business location. "Extremists and racists are dividing our society, dividing our country and jeopardizing our prosperity," said Busch. "We want more diversity, more openness and more tolerance for a society worth living in and prosperity." This is the basis for innovative strength and competitiveness.

Siemens is participating with numerous other companies in the economic alliance "We stand for values". Deutsche Bahn and Deutsche Bank are also involved. "We need much more Europe. We need to further strengthen this single market," said Deutsche Bank CEO Christian Sewing. Populists want exactly the opposite, but the competitiveness of Germany and Europe is based on open markets.

Deutsche Bahn CEO Richard Lutz reported on political statements on the Group's internal platforms "that we do not approve of". "When it comes to the question of what we still tolerate and where we draw the red line, we have tightened things up a bit," said Lutz. "We are entering the discussion much more sharply and sometimes blocking comment functions."

Companies and society as a whole need to start "breaking up the echo chambers. This can only be done through dialog and discourse," said Lutz. "This is incredibly exhausting, but I believe that we have no other chance if we want to counter the populist division of society." However, the Deutsche Bahn Group is also prepared to ban individual employees from internal networks if they make extreme statements./nif/DP/jha