Chancellor of Germany Scholz
“This is President Putin’s big, big mistake”
From: 17:39 | Reading time: 4 minutes
“We will do everything to become independent”
“We will reduce our dependence on fossil imports – coal, oil and gas – as quickly as possible so that no one can blackmail us,” Chancellor Scholz said during an SPD campaign in North Rhine-Westphalia.
During an election campaign in North Rhine-Westphalia, Olaf Scholz harshly criticized the Russian president. Putin had miscalculated, the Federal Chancellor emphasized in relation to the war in Ukraine. Scholz emotionally reacted to disturbing phone calls during his speech.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) has accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of causing global damage with the Russian attack on Ukraine. The war intensifies the economic and social problems that already existed across the world as a result of the corona pandemic, Scholz said Saturday at an SPD election event in Essen. “It’s a destruction of the future far beyond Russia and Ukraine.” Putin follows an “imperialist vision of previous centuries”. But you will object to it.
Putin miscalculated, said the SPD politician. They will continue to support Ukraine, including with defense weapons. A large unity of the world’s democratic states reacted quickly and imposed harsh sanctions on Russia. Putin is not only responsible for the death and destruction in Ukraine. “He is also destroying Russia’s future. This is President Putin’s big, big mistake,” Scholz said. Everything is being done to ensure that the war ends quickly and that there is again a European peace order in which borders are no longer violated.
Scholz referred to former SPD Chancellors Willy Brandt and Helmut Schmidt. They knew that it was necessary to be strong so that violence could not break the law. That’s why they’re talking to each other in NATO, that’s why the Bundeswehr is now being strengthened, he said, referring to the €100 billion planned fund for Bundeswehr equipment.
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He reacted emotionally to hissing and disturbances during his speech and verbally attacked a group of suspected crown critics. The chancellor said he was proud of citizens’ solidarity with Ukraine’s refugees.
Solidarity is also valid “when we talk about health. When we talk about how to protect each other. For example, throughout the time of the corona pandemic,” Scholz explained, as whistles and whistles got louder and louder. “And I’m saying this because there are some people shouting out loud: Hello! Shout out, because that’s what we’re fighting for and what the citizens of Ukraine are fighting for. That you can speak your mind out loud without having to be afraid .”
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Scholz drew attention to freedom of expression in a democracy like Germany: “That’s why I don’t accept the evil cynicism with which some say you can’t give your opinion on this subject here. It’s a lie! Look around dictatorships of this world and you’ll know what that means,” exclaimed the 63-year-old. “Just because you scream it out loud doesn’t mean you’re right. But you need some arguments for that. And one of those arguments is that the corona pandemic is a great threat to all of humanity.”
Lindner: New help for war-affected businesses
Federal Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP) also sees serious consequences for economic development from the war in Ukraine, but also from the corona pandemic. “This is a very sensitive economic situation that we are in. It is absolutely dangerous,” the minister said on Saturday at a conference of the FDP state party of North Rhine-Westphalia in Duisburg. Next week there will likely be new aid for companies that are particularly affected by the war in Ukraine.
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In the long term, however, the state will not be able to cushion everything with programs financed by loans, emphasized the finance minister. New prosperity must be generated with a wealth of ideas. “No one can relieve us that there is a lot of work and effort waiting for this country.”
The sharp rise in prices as a result of the crises caused by the corona pandemic and the war have already led many people to change their behavior, their driving style and their consumption. In such a situation, it should not be the role of politicians to promote fears. Rather, it is the responsibility of politicians to overcome capacity bottlenecks. That’s why he doesn’t want to participate in debates about speed limits or not eating meat.
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