Suzuki has ended its association with Volkswagen

In the end, what everyone saw coming has happened. The warnings from the president of Suzuki have not been in vain: after months of conflict between the two companies, Suzuki is ending its commercial relationship with Volkswagen, as Osamu Suzuki had announced.

To briefly recap the situation, the Japanese company has always argued that the Germans did not fulfil their part of the agreement, which required Volkswagen to share part of its technology with Suzuki. Osamu Suzuki’s latest statements said he was very disappointed by the lack of cooperation from his powerful partners.

In principle there would be no problem with both companies ending their partnership. The only open question is that Volkswagen holds a 20% stake in Suzuki. The Japanese want those shares sold back to them, while the Germans have already said that they will not sell them.

Despite Osamu Suzuki’s advanced age, this executive has shown he is not to be trifled with. If Volkswagen does not return the shares, he has already threatened to take the matter to an international court.

Source | Automotive News