Johann Saathoff was appointed as the new Coordinator for Intersocietal Cooperation with Russia, Central Asia and the Eastern Partnership Countries on 26 August 2020.

Saathoff (Social Democratic Party of Germany, SPD) is a member of the Committee on Economic Affairs and Energy, as well as Energy Policy Coordinator of the SPD parliamentary group in the German Bundestag. In addition to this, Saathoff is a member of the Committee on Food and Agriculture, Chairman of the Lower Saxony-Bremen regional group in the SPD parliamentary group, Chairman of the SPD Coastal Group and Deputy Chair of the Parliamentary Friendship Group for Relations with the ASEAN States in the German Bundestag.

Since September 2013, Saathoff has been a directly elected Member of the German Bundestag for Aurich-Emden constituency. From 2003 to 2013, Saathoff was the first full- time Mayor of Krummhörn.