A speech by the Federal Chancellor in the Bundestag on the EU summit in Brussels and the meeting of Europeans with Asian countries has been announced – and of course Olaf Scholz will also say a few words about it.
But after just a few minutes, it’s clear that the chancellor wants to be a bit more fundamental so close to Christmas and New Year’s Eve. “In the last few weeks, a particularly difficult year is coming to an end,” he says at the beginning of a speech that will sound like a test run for the New Year’s speech.
Scholz speaks about the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine and how “fundamentally” Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin miscalculated. “Not a single one of Putin’s plans has worked out,” says Scholz. That is “the real story of this year 2022”.
At the weekend, the traffic light wants to open the first floating terminal for liquid gas
From the Social Democratic Chancellor’s point of view, this story would of course not be complete if it were not also told as a success story of his government. Putin was wrong “about the courage of the Ukrainians, about Europe, about us, about the character of our democracies, about our will to resist great power mania and imperialism,” Scholz said.
In the course of his speech, the Chancellor repeatedly worked out his own part in this resistance. He refers to the German Ukraine aid – “financial, humanitarian and with weapons”. It will continue “just as long as it is needed” and contribute to the successful defense of Ukraine, which Putin’s “terrible and at the same time completely desperate scorched earth strategy” will not change.
The chancellor sums up that Putin’s attempt to use gas as a means of exerting pressure has also failed. “In no other area have we made such great progress in such a short time,” says Scholz. Nothing proves “that as clearly as the opening of the first floating terminal for liquid gas, which we will celebrate in Wilhelmshaven on Saturday”.
Scholz would like to celebrate the stage victory on Saturday together with Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck from the Greens and Finance Minister Christian Lindner from the FDP, which shows the symbolic effect that he expects from it. “I’ve been announcing this for months,” he triumphs, “and for months people have looked at me in disbelief and said: Still this year? It’ll never work out.”
That was “the good news that gives confidence at the end of this bitter year,” Scholz later summarized. Germany accepted the “enormous challenges”. “We have grown together with these tasks,” he announces at the end, which, in contrast to the New Year’s speech, cannot be a real one, because it is now CDU leader Friedrich Merz’s turn.
The “Mr. Chancellor” is hiding behind the NATO partners, says Merz
The tension between the chancellor and the leader of the opposition has repeatedly erupted in lively exchanges over the past few months, which is why Merz is now faced with the decision of either continuing the chancellor’s more pre-Christmas tone or setting his own. “We share your assessment of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine and, above all, your assessment of the war in recent weeks,” Merz begins, but the consonance is short-lived.
It is true that Germany “supplied some important military equipment after some hesitation”. The Ukrainian army still lacks armored personnel carriers and battle tanks, which could be supplied from Bundeswehr and industry stocks, complains the CDU leader. Almost ten months after the start of the war, the “Mr. Chancellor” was hiding behind the NATO partners, who allegedly did not want to deliver either. But that is not the case at all. “It’s mainly up to you personally that Ukraine doesn’t get this help,” Merz attacked the chancellor.
Even with the rearmament of the Bundeswehr, he fell far short of the promises made in his speech on February 27, turning the corner. The defense budget is falling and the very first funds from the 100 billion euro special fund are only now being released.
Merz Scholz accuses a lack of ideas in European politics. For the Europa house, he only meticulously lists the inventory. “But you almost completely lack the view for the statics of this house, for the foundation of this house and you lack the imagination of an architect and the determined will of a master builder to make this house in Europe weatherproof and future-proof,” he criticizes. At that point at the latest, the pre-Christmas quiet in the Bundestag happened.
As in the past, Merz stimulates the traffic light defense reflexes like no other. The CDU once had the right to “be a state-supporting party”, now Merz has only been delivering “populism opposition” for months, calls Green co-group leader Katharina Dröge. Merz has neither constructive opposition work nor alternatives to offer, seconded FDP parliamentary group leader Christian Dürr. For the traffic light, on the other hand, the following applies: “We act.” And Scholz didn’t want to say anything else.