The former German Chancellor Angela Merkel criticized her Christian Democrats in the center-right (CDU) for having used the support of the extreme right alternative for Germany (AFD) to push an online migration movement hard by the Parliament.
Merkel noted that the chief of the Friedrich Merz party had declared in November that no measure should be adopted with the support of AFD before the elections of February 23, adding “I think it was bad to no longer feel linked by this proposal “.
Rare intervention
“This proposal and the attitude associated with it were an expression of great national political responsibility, which I fully support,” said Merkel in a statement published by his office.
She said that the break with the commitment had led to a first “majority with AFD votes during a vote in the German Bundestag”.
His remarks come after after Merz put a vote on Wednesday a non -binding motion which calls for Germany to return many more migrants back to its borders, knowing that it might need that AFD support passes.
The support of the far -right party has made it possible to go through three votes.
Merkel’s declaration was a rare intervention by the former German chief, who has kept a low profile since his departure.
“Merz made a mistake”: DW political editor
DW’s political editor Michaela Küfner said on X, formerly Twitter, that Merkel’s criticism, which is still a largely respected political figure in Germany, could harm Merz’s position within the party.
Küfner said later Merkel’s conviction was a hard blow for Merz.
“His pure and simple conviction that he is” wrong “to accept the votes of the extreme right of the AFD party alienated the voters on the left, right and center,” said Küfner.
“He may have relaunched the conservative CDU / CSU by distanting him from the Merkel years. But the shadow of the woman of the historic states is looming,” she said, adding that Merz had made a mistake by breaking his own promise not to ask for a parliamentary majority from parliamentary majority with participation in AFD.
“Unless its strategy is now quickly validated by a strong increase in polls for its conservative CDU / CSU and a drop in support for AFD, Merz will be stuck with the label of a traitor at the Democratic Center,” said declared Küfner, saying “The coming weeks will become a moment of truth for the conservative CDU and for Germany. “”
Merz follows CDU on a harder migration course
Merz took over the CDU after Merkel, with whom he had often disagreed, resigned as Chancellor in 2021.
Since then, he has taken a more restrictive position on migration, claiming last week that Germany had a “policy of erroneous asylum and immigration” for a decade, apparently in reference to Merkel’s decision in 2015 for Allow the large number of refugees, many fleeing the Syrian war in the country.
Migration has become a major problem in the German electoral campaign before vote on February 23 after a series of attacks allocated to suspects with migrant history, including a deadly knife attack in Aschaffenburg a week ago.
Merkel demanded that “all Democratic parties work together through the political borders of the parties, not as a tactical maneuver, but honestly, moderately and on the basis of applicable European law, to do everything possible to prevent such attacks terrible “.
TJ / WD (Reuters, AP, AFP, DPA)
