Wagenknecht sees chances for government participation after talks with CDU

After initial talks with the CDU, party founder Sahra Wagenknecht sees opportunities for possible government participation in Thuringia and Saxony. In Brandenburg, too, the BSW will not close itself off to talks after the state elections on Sunday, the leader of the alliance, Sahra Wagenknecht, told the German Press Agency in Potsdam. At the same time, she sharply criticized the CDU federal chairman Friedrich Merz.

"First of all, I can say from the talks I have had with Mr Kretschmer and Mr Voigt that I believe there is a genuine interest in taking a new path together with us," said Wagenknecht, referring to Saxony's Minister President Michael Kretschmer and Thuringia's CDU leader Mario Voigt. "But to what extent this will really manifest itself in a willingness to change policy is something we can't say at this point in time."

She repeated the call for foreign policy goals to be included in the preamble of a coalition agreement for a state government, namely the demand for more diplomacy to settle the war in Ukraine and a "reduction of the risk of war in Germany" as well as the rejection of new US medium-range missiles in Germany.

In this context, she attacked the position of CDU leader Merz: "There is of course a very big problem at federal level in that Mr Merz's foreign policy positions would actually massively endanger Germany," said Wagenknecht. Merz wants to supply Taurus missiles to Ukraine - that would be highly dangerous according to her. "So, I very much hope that Mr Merz, before the question becomes concrete, because he might actually be the next chancellor, that there will still be debates in the CDU about whether to go down this path."

Wagenknecht concluded the election campaign in Brandenburg on Wednesday evening with a final rally in Potsdam. Several hundred people gathered on Luisenplatz in the city center. A new state parliament will be elected in Brandenburg on Sunday.