Co-Chair of BSW: US missiles in Germany are a red line

Ahead of the three state elections in eastern Germany, the co-leader of the Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance, Amira Mohamed Ali, has described the deployment of long-range US weapons in Germany as a red line for possible government participation. "We will not be in any state government that simply accepts or even supports the deployment of missiles," she told the Rheinische Post newspaper. "We as BSW are so firmly against it that we are making it a red line for government participation."

Saxony's Minister President Michael Kretschmer (CDU) had recently spoken out in favor of the deployment of such weapons. When asked whether this would rule out an alliance with the CDU, Mohamed Ali said: "If he insists that the state government shares this position, then yes."

On the fringes of the NATO summit in July, the White House and the German government announced that the USA wanted to station weapons systems in Germany again from 2026 onwards that would reach as far as Russia. Tomahawk cruise missiles, SM-6 missiles and new hypersonic weapons were mentioned.

BSW: Will not form a coalition or cooperate with AfD

According to polls, the BSW could become the third-strongest party behind the AfD and CDU in the state elections in Thuringia on September 1. However, according to the co-leader of the party, there will be no coalition between BSW and AfD. "We are clearly ruling out cooperation with the AfD - not only with Mr. Höcke, but also overall," she said with regard to the AfD's leading candidate in Thuringia, Björn Höcke.

It is important to engage with the AfD in terms of content. However, this does not mean working together on joint motions or even coalitions, Ali said. This is out of the question with a party that is partly far-right.

In September, there are state elections in Thuringia, Saxony and Brandenburg.