Germany: Can the SPD’s Coalition with the Greens Last Long?

During their first few weeks in power in Berlin, the Greens have used every chance to confirm their allegiance to the financial elites behind the “green deal” and the Great Reset, and to the transatlantic “war party”. Nowhere is this more glaring than in connection with Russia, although China is not far behind, while their “climate” and energy agenda, if implemented, will have devastating consequences. This promises to spell major problems for the coalition headed by Social Democrat Olaf Scholz.

The latest controversy erupted around the election of the Federal President in February, with the Greens threatening to not vote for the re-election of current President Frank Walter Steinmeier of the SPD. Steinmeier has the highest popularity rating of all leading politicians in the country at this point, not least because he is known for a policy of dialogue and cooperation with Russia. To replace him as President at this very critical juncture in East-West relations would destabilize the functioning of SPD Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s government.

All the more so as the Greens promote a notoriously anti-Russian policy, including full support for Ukraine and for NATO expansion eastward, as well as which the stationing of new U.S. nuclear missiles on German territory.

This prompted Scholz to consider taking the German-Russian dialogue out of the hands of Green Party Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock. According to Bild, he wants to seek “a new start” in relations with Moscow by giving a green light to the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline (opposed by Baerbock) and promoting the Minsk agreements on Ukraine. Moreover, Scholz’s foreign policy adviser Jens Plötner is preparing a meeting between the Chancellor and Vladimir Putin to take place later in January. Shortly after this move by Scholz, the Greens reversed their position on Steinmeier.

As for China, Economics Minister Robert Habeck of the Greens and Annalena Baerbock have vociferous anti-China views, and have repeatedly raised the possibility of new sanctions due to alleged human rights violations. While Baerbock said she would consider imposing a diplomatic boycott of the Winter Olympics, Scholz rejected that option. The problem has been recognized by Xi Jinping, who recently delivered a discreet, but nonetheless clear attack on Baerbock by expressing the hope that Scholz would handle bilateral relations himself as head of government.

Then, on the energy question, the Greens’ rejection of pro-nuclear power policies casts doubt on Germany’s relations with the French. Chancellor Scholz declared shortly before Christmas that his government would stick to the total exit from nuclear power, but also accept France’s position. But leading Greens have insisted that the government veto any decision by the European Commission (announced for mid-January) to include nuclear power in its “taxonomy” of sustainable energy sources. Here again, Scholz may consider consider taking the dialogue with France out of the hands of the Greens, to avoid severe damage in German-French relations.