Baerbock calls for unity of the German government coalition to stop the rise of Alternative for Germany

BERLIN, 22 July (DPA/EP) –

The German Foreign Minister, Annalena Baerbock, called for greater unity in the government coalition given the high rates of voting intention registered by the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD).

“In times of uncertainty, such as the one that occurs due to the Russian war of aggression, the populist parties have it easier. We must not make it even easier for them with our internal disputes,” said the also leader of the Los Verdes party.

The German coalition is made up of the Social Democratic Party (SPD), the Greens and the Liberal Party (FDP).

Baerbock said the Russian war against Ukraine and its aftermath have been exhausting, but some discussions in the government “could certainly have been conducted a little more calmly.”

Therefore, the minister advocated not making things too easy for populism, which in her opinion offers supposedly simple answers. “Because our world is complex, I cannot apply black and white thinking to it,” she has argued.

Compromises need effort, he added, “but they are the core of democracy, in which fortunately no one decides things by banging the table”

According to the minister, it is up to the democratic parties to explain to the citizens why some things are more complicated and why commitments in democracy require more patience. “That is exhausting, but it is the task of politics,” she opined.