Explorations: Sahra Wagenknecht warns the SPD and CDU of failure

In the dispute over a coalition in Thuringia, BSW boss Sahra Wagenknecht has called on her own regional association to follow the party line. “Many people have high hopes for our new party, so we’ve got off to a brilliant start,” said Wagenknecht star. “Everyone who is involved in the BSW has a damned responsibility not to disappoint these expectations.”

“The voters’ mandate to the BSW is not to enable things to continue as they are,” explained Wagenknecht. “Willingness to compromise must not be an excuse to throw overboard almost everything you were elected for in order to participate in government.”

In Thuringia, exploratory talks with the CDU and SPD are on pause because of Wagenknecht’s foreign policy conditions. The BSW chairwoman blames the stalling on a lack of willingness to compromise on the part of the other two parties.

“We have come a long way to accommodate the CDU and SPD in the preamble on the subject of peace,” she said. “If they let a coalition fail because of this, it shows that they are not taking us and the concerns of many voters seriously.” In Saxony and Brandenburg, where the BSW is also holding discussions, things will hopefully go better.

Wagenknecht defended her constant interference in the exploratory talks in the states. “We promised voters that we would support a different foreign policy because the current one is very dangerous,” she said. “We’ll make good on that.”

Wagenknecht demands that a state government with BSW participation speak out in favor of an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine and against the stationing of US medium-range weapons in Germany. According to information from the Thuringian state party, the wording for the preamble of a future coalition agreement, which has been renegotiated several times with the CDU and SPD, is sufficient for it star not even remotely.

After the BSW federal leadership, on Wagenknecht’s behalf, again demanded significant improvements from the Thuringian negotiators on Friday, negotiations with the potential partners were interrupted. They are scheduled to continue at the beginning of the week. While the SPD is increasingly distancing itself publicly, there is still hope for a compromise in the BSW and CDU.

As an alternative, a CDU-SPD minority government tolerated by the BSW is now being discussed more strongly again. However: The three parties only have 44 of the 88 seats in the state parliament. Given this stalemate, they would also have to rely on support from the Left faction.