Bodo Ramelow is already thinking about the time after the war: a new state parliament will be elected in Thuringia on September 1st. The war in Ukraine is a major issue in the election campaign.
Thuringia’s Prime Minister Bodo Ramelow is calling for a European peace order that includes Russia in the medium term. “All participating states must conclude a non-aggression pact and form a defense community that focuses on resolving conflicts on the European continent,” the Left Party politician told the newspapers of the Funke Media Group.
Ramelow admitted that such a step was currently unthinkable. “Of course, that is not possible with a dictatorship, an apparatus of oppression, and (President Vladimir) Putin is not a representative of freedom and peace. But we must keep an eye on the country – and strengthen those who want change in Russia.” The war against Ukraine and the massive repression in our own country could release forces in Russian society. “We should trust in that.”
Ramelow assured that he was not against NATO, but in favor of a reorganization of European defense. “Germany needs an army for national defense that deserves its name. That is why I am strictly in favor of equipping the Bundeswehr well. But we must finally think of Europe as a whole, and Russia is part of that.”
Bodo Ramelow warns of “simmering conflicts that Putin can stir up at any time”
The Prime Minister stressed the risks of the current situation. Moldova and Georgia should be admitted to the EU, although there are unresolved territorial conflicts in both states. “All the weapons that the Soviet army had in the GDR are stored in the Moldovan region of Transnistria. These are simmering conflicts that Putin can stir up at any time,” warned Ramelow.
He also referred to the German-led NATO brigade that is to be permanently stationed in Lithuania. “And there is a motion in the Duma in Russia to revoke Lithuania’s sovereignty. If that is dealt with, it could happen very quickly and we could be in the middle of a war.”
A new state parliament will be elected in Thuringia on September 1st. In recent polls, the AfD was ahead of the CDU and also the parties of the red-red-green minority government. The AfD – like the Sahra Wagenknecht (BSW) alliance – strictly rejects arms deliveries to Ukraine and is pushing for negotiations with Russia.
Source: Stern
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