Explorations ended: SPD and BSW before coalition negotiations in Brandenburg

About five weeks after the state elections, the SPD and BSW in Brandenburg are about to begin coalition negotiations. The two party leaders Dietmar Woidke (SPD) and Robert Crumbach (BSW) drew a positive conclusion from the exploratory talks and recommended that the two party executives speak out in favor of starting negotiations that evening.

Coalition negotiations next week

“It is now an obligation to ensure that Brandenburg is a state that has a secure government. (…) It was not an easy path that we set out on,” said Woidke at a press conference in the Potsdam state parliament. The exploratory result is an “intermediate stage”. “The real challenge comes with the coalition negotiations,” emphasized Woidke. The deputy SPD state chairwoman Katrin Lange added that negotiations could begin next week.

The topic of peace is central to BSW

Both sides appeared to be in agreement on the central issue of peace efforts in Ukraine. “We agreed that we would (…) work to promote a diplomatic solution to the Ukraine conflict and the reduction of the associated tensions within Europe through negotiations with the parties to the conflict with the aim of a ceasefire and lasting peace,” it said in the draft of a joint exploratory paper.

“We are happy with any diplomatic effort,” added Crumbach. “We bet on everyone.” His party emphasizes that Germany bears a great responsibility in bringing about a ceasefire, but has not yet lived up to this responsibility. Both sides left it open which specific measures should be taken.

Efforts for greater peace remain vague

“Against this background, we view the planned stationing of medium-range and hypersonic missiles on German soil critically. Concrete offers are needed to get back to disarmament and arms control,” the SPD and BSW continued in the paper. In other passages, both parties remained quite vague on this topic, but committed themselves to the “defense capability of our country” and to strengthening the Bundeswehr.

Party leader Wagenknecht consults with the state executive board?

BSW boss Sahra Wagenknecht calls for a clear position on the deployment of US medium-range missiles and for a ceasefire between Russia and the invaded Ukraine. Wagenknecht is not directly at the negotiating table, but the BSW in Brandenburg says it is coordinating closely with her. When asked whether Wagenknecht was also at the table when the state executive board discussed the exploratory paper, Crumbach left room for interpretation. So far, we have worked closely with the federal party, he said. “We’ll do the same tonight.”

The CDU, FDP and Greens criticize the paper

The CDU, FDP and the Greens criticized the exploratory paper. “The exploratory paper presented makes it clear that the SPD Brandenburg is ready to say goodbye to its foreign policy positions just to make itself look nice for Sahra Wagenknecht,” accused Brandenburg CDU parliamentary group leader Jan Redmann of the Social Democrats. The FDP state chairman Zyon Braun criticized that never before had a future state government commented so intensively on foreign policy and so little on the future of Brandenburg. The Greens criticized the lack of answers to “pressing social questions” such as housing construction and rent increases.

Difficult formation of a government in Saxony and Thuringia

In Saxony and Thuringia it is also about possible government participation, but about a blackberry coalition made up of the CDU, BSW and SPD. In Saxony, the exploratory talks were interrupted on Friday because MPs from the BSW parliamentary group also approved a request from the AfD for a Corona investigative committee in the state parliament. But now we have to move on. “The voting behavior in the plenary session as well as misunderstandings in dealing with each other were addressed and cleared up,” the parties said in a joint statement.

According to the SPD, a meeting with top politicians from the CDU and the BSW is planned today. This should clarify whether and how the talks in Saxony could be continued.

In Thuringia, the project is in jeopardy: the search for a compromise on peace policy demands, which Wagenknecht made a prerequisite for the start of coalition negotiations, has so far been unsuccessful. Over the weekend, the leaders of the CDU, BSW and SPD gave themselves time to think about it. It should end on Monday or Tuesday with the resumption of talks, negotiating circles said on Sunday. “The chances are 50:50,” said one of the negotiators to the German Press Agency. And: “The door isn’t closed.” A new compromise proposal would be attempted.

Wagenknecht warns against too much willingness to compromise

BSW boss Wagenknecht warned her party against making too many concessions on the way to possible government participation. Compromises must be possible, she told the magazine “Stern”. “But willingness to compromise must not be an excuse to throw overboard almost everything you were elected for in order to participate in government.” Many people had high hopes for the BSW as a new party. “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