After initial discussions about a possible three-party alliance, the SPD, FDP and the Greens made a joint statement. The three party representatives emphasize that the talks went well and were “trusting”.
“I can tell you that the conversation was intense,” said SPD General Secretary Lars Klingbeil. From the beginning it was about topics: “We didn’t start with polite phrases today.” It is about tackling the great future challenges of this country. “During the conversation I felt that we can create something together”.
FDP General Secretary Volker Wissing also found the conversation “went very well”. They wanted to find out whether there was a willingness to take larger hurdles together – and that was what we saw today, said Wissing. But it is also clear: “There are issues where it won’t be easy.” The important thing is: “We don’t want to ignore things, we want to address them specifically.”
Michael Kellner, Federal Managing Director of Bündnis 90 / Die Grünen, was convinced: “Solutions can be found for our country’s problems, together.” He spoke of a “strong sign” that such different parties could talk to each other with confidence.
The talks will continue next Monday, all three party representatives announced. Then one will start with “in-depth explorations,” said Kellner. Klingbeil emphasized that they wanted to use the next week to “continue to advise intensively” in order to “then come to an agreement”. (07.10.2021)
Laschet wants to reorganize the CDU
CDU boss Armin Laschet said on Thursday afternoon in a video link of the Union faction that he wanted the CDU to be reorganized. There should be a party congress for this, he did not initially name a date. Laschet said that now must apply: first the country, then the party, then the people. A Jamaica coalition would be better for the country than a traffic light coalition. Laschet indicated the willingness to postpone its own ambitions for possible Jamaica negotiations with the Greens and the FDP. “If it goes better with other people, then gladly,” said the CDU boss, according to participants.
How things are now going on in the party will be discussed in the presidium and the executive committee. In any case, he wanted to avoid a “personnel battle”. Instead, the CDU needs a joint consensus proposal. Laschet referred to North Rhine-Westphalia, where the CDU had just decided by mutual agreement that Hendrik Wüst should succeed him as Prime Minister. Many people would still be waiting for a Jamaica coalition of the Union, the Greens and the FDP. Therefore, it must apply that the CDU must be ready for a Jamaica coalition “until the last second”. Because he could not imagine how the SPD, Greens and FDP wanted to bring their issues together in a traffic light. (07.10.2021)
The SPD, Greens and FDP begin exploratory talks
One and a half weeks after the federal election, the SPD, FDP and the Greens met for a first three-way discussion to form a new federal government. After the delegation of the Social Democrats, the negotiators from the Greens and the FDP gradually arrived at the negotiating venue, the City Cube in Berlin, on Thursday.
As the first member of a delegation, SPD Chancellor candidate Olaf Scholz drove up to the event hall at 7.50 a.m. for preliminary discussions on the SPD side. Scholz went to the entrance with a briefcase and greeted waiting journalists with a brief “Morning”. SPD leader Norbert Walter-Borjans came shortly afterwards and said: “I am going into the talks with great confidence.” According to the SPD, the meeting was scheduled for six hours.
Walter-Borjans emphasized that the SPD wanted to bring the country forward. “Now we have to make sure that we really tap the points one by one, and then we’ll see.”
When the politicians from the Greens and the FDP arrived one after the other, activists from an association for “More Democracy” and from Greenpeace had set up in front of the hall. Green boss Robert Habeck promised in a short conversation with a Greenpeace activist that the climate should be an issue in the conversation with the SPD and FDP. “Otherwise there is no point,” said Habeck. The Greens co-chair Annalena Baerbock told the environmentalists shortly afterwards: “That will definitely be an issue today.” FDP leader Christian Lindner was the last of the negotiators to come into the hall at 10:47 a.m.
The SPD is hoping for a decision at the end of the meeting for further discussions. SPD general secretary Lars Klingbeil said in the ZDF morning magazine: “If that is the decision to continue, then real explorations must now come very quickly.”
According to information from the German Press Agency, the Union parliamentary group in the Bundestag will meet for a switching conference in the afternoon to discuss the current situation. It is eagerly awaited how the situation for CDU boss Armin Laschet will develop up to the regular deliberations of the CDU top bodies on Monday. Laschet has been under massive pressure since the CDU / CSU election disaster. In the Union it is assumed that the parliamentary group’s switching conference will also discuss the question of whether one should continue to be ready for negotiations with the Greens and the FDP. (07.10.2021)
Scholz optimistic, FDP: Jamaica not off the table yet
“It starts tomorrow,” said SPD Chancellor candidate Olaf Scholz. The Greens and the FDP announced on Wednesday that they wanted to start explorations with the SPD via a traffic light coalition. He welcomed the fact that there were now exploratory talks; his party invited the Greens and the FDP to this last week. At the same time, Scholz praised the “professional manner” with which the two possible partners had conducted these discussions so far.
The liberals would only join a government in the center, “which strengthens the value of freedom and which provides a real impetus for the renewal of our country,” said FDP leader Christian Lindner. “We are guided by where we can implement the most liberal policies.” A Jamaica coalition with the Union and the Greens is not yet off the table, said Lindner. “We have the greatest overlap in terms of content with the Union.” A Jamaica coalition therefore remains an “option that is viable in terms of content,” said Lindner. “However, the will to govern and the unity of the Union parties are being discussed in public.” There are no parallel talks to the traffic light explorations with the SPD and the Greens.
Shortly before, the Greens chairmen Annalena Baerbock and Robert Habeck had publicly proposed to the FDP that they enter into three-way talks with the SPD. The country is facing major challenges and cannot afford a long hangover. The previous explorations have shown that the FDP and SPD have the greatest possible overlap in terms of content, especially in the area of social policy, said Habeck. “Conceivable, however, expressly means that the biscuit is a long way from being eaten.” There are still significant differences, both with the FDP and the SPD. Many things have not yet been discussed.
The intention to negotiate with the FDP and SPD is not yet a “complete rejection” of a Jamaica coalition with the Union, said Habeck. The Union really made an effort and went far to meet the Greens, for example in terms of climate protection. There were differences in social policy and in European integration.
The SPD, Greens and FDP did not name a specific time frame for explorations. But explorations do not have to be sophisticated coalition negotiations, said Habeck. At the end of the day, the parties have to make a political decision as to whether or not to continue. Previous alliances at the state level have shown that explorations with a single-digit number of meetings could succeed. (06.10.2021)
Söder: The traffic light is now the clear number one
The CSU chairman Markus Söder says he recognizes “the de facto rejection of Jamaica by the Greens and the FDP”. Now you finally have clarity. “We expressly regret this decision,” said the Bavarian Prime Minister. Jamaica would have been a good chance to modernize the country.
Even if the CSU accepts the decision of the Liberals and Greens, they will continue to be ready to talk. The Union will not remain in a permanent position and will not serve as a means of pressure for the FDP and the Greens. The two parties could not refer to talks with the Union to get what they wanted from the SPD. That prohibits the “self-respect and dignity of the Union”. According to Söder, it would have been fair if the FDP and the Greens had negotiated once together with both the SPD and the Union.
One has to “acknowledge the realities” and admit to oneself that in the coming years other ways are possible to be part of the government. Probably there will be no government participation for the Union, so Söder further. He is curious to see whether a traffic light coalition can work and also whether the hopes that the population has placed in the traffic light will be fulfilled.
CDU boss Armin Laschet, on the other hand, only made a brief statement. “We respect that there are now joint talks between the FDP, the Greens and the SPD,” said the Union’s candidate for chancellor. “We have signaled: We are also ready for further talks. But the decision of who to talk to and in which order rests with the FDP and the Greens.”
That there is still the possibility of a Jamaica coalition – leading CDU politicians did not want to know anything on Wednesday. “The traffic light train has just left the station,” tweeted Federal Minister of Economics Peter Altmaier (CDU). For the first time in 41 years, the FDP and SPD (and the Greens) are seriously talking about a coalition. “CDU / CSU are observers. We now have to do our homework and show that we have understood the lesson of September 26th.”
According to the deputy CDU chairwoman Julia Klöckner, her party is now facing far-reaching upheaval. “After 16 years of governance, we are facing a turning point. As hard as it is, we must now see this situation as an opportunity,” she said Rheinische Post. When exploring a possible traffic light coalition, the greatest challenge facing the FDP is to position itself between two factions of the SPD and the Greens that have moved to the left. (06.10.2021)