Saturday 15th May 2021
Interview with Joschka Fischer
“Annalena Baerbock has the skills”
From Philipp Sandmann
What does the former Vice Chancellor of the Greens think about the Green candidate for Chancellor Annalena Baerbock? And what about Chancellor Angela Merkel?
When Joschka Fischer became Federal Foreign Minister in 1998, Annalena Baerbock was not yet 18 years old. Almost 23 years later, the chances of becoming the next German Chancellor are good, and the Greens have the historic opportunity to move into the Chancellery.
On the sidelines of a double interview with the Israeli ambassador, there was the opportunity to ask Fischer, who has shaped his party like no other, a few questions. Would he ever have thought it possible that the Greens would have a chance at the Chancellery? When answering this question, Fischer indulges a little. He remembers the time when the Greens first moved into parliament in Bonn in 1983. Acid rain and the dying of forests were the big issues at the time and the Greens brought a dead tree into parliament as their first statement.
“When we passed the Federal Chancellery in Bonn before we got to Parliament, I said to a colleague: This will be the next stop for us. Of course, I couldn’t have guessed at the time that it would take 30 years or more.” Fischer added about the scenario of a Green in the Chancellery: “I would be extremely happy if that should happen. On the one hand … On the other hand, it would also be a huge challenge.”
The chancellor candidate comes like Fischer from the Realo wing of the party. The former Ober-Realo says about a possible Federal Chancellor Annalena Baerbock: “She has the skills.”
Members of the Greens on March 29, 1983, accompanied by around 200 sympathizers, on their way to the Bundestag. Joschka Fischer can be seen between Otto Schily (with tie) and Petra Kelly.
(Photo: picture alliance / Hartmut Reeh)
Should Baerbock really become Chancellor, this would be a “future-oriented and extremely positive signal for change”, said Fischer, and would show “that our country is ready for a new generation”. The former Vice Chancellor adds, referring to the Greens boss Robert Habeck: “But we were also in the very unusual situation that we had two excellent candidates.”
“We paid a high price for this”
Fischer never worked with Chancellor Angela Merkel. When she became head of the CDU, he was Federal Foreign Minister. The “elephant round” on the evening of the 2005 Bundestag election, in which Fischer also took part, will not be forgotten. In view of the surprisingly good performance of the SPD, the then Federal Chancellor Gerhard Schröder refused that evening to acknowledge his electoral defeat. Neither Schröder nor his Vice Chancellor Fischer could have guessed at the time that Merkel would end up being Chancellor for 16 years.
What does Fischer think of Merkel today? “I would say that Angela Merkel gave the Germans a feeling of security, but we paid a high price for it. In many respects, Germany is not prepared for the challenges of our time – digitization is an example,” criticizes Fischer. Germany is not “up to date” when it comes to taking on the role of the largest economy in the European Union.
Fischer on the SPD and the Left
Fischer considers it unrealistic that the Greens could form a coalition with the SPD and the Left after the federal election in September: “I don’t think that such a coalition is really a serious option.” In addition, the SPD would have to deal “psychologically” with the fact that the Greens might be the stronger partner. “But the Left as a third party? I don’t see how you can form a coalition with them. The Left Party is split between the West and romantic dreams about Russia.”
You cannot form a government and pursue a western-style foreign policy if you have “romantic ideas about Russia and Putin,” says Fischer to the Left and adds: “That is impossible. The same applies to their attitude towards Israel, it is not negotiable. “
“Afghanistan becomes a humanitarian crisis”
The former Foreign Minister repeated his call for greater commitment by the Federal Republic of Germany with a view to defense spending in Germany and the European Union. Even with a US President Joe Biden, Germany should not sit back. “I don’t even want to imagine what would have happened if Donald Trump had been re-elected. I don’t think NATO would have survived another four years,” he says.
The EU had to do more to impress “public opinion” in the US: “We have to show that rich Europeans are willing to spend more money on their own security.”
With regard to the situation in the Middle East, Fischer warns of the possible consequences of the withdrawal of troops by the Americans and the Bundeswehr from Afghanistan: “We are facing a major humanitarian crisis. We must be clear about this scenario when we leave Afghanistan.”
Fishermen over Israel
On the subject of Israel, Fischer praised the Chancellor: “I never elected Angela Merkel and I have a lot to criticize about her. But if you look at the German-Israeli relationship and the various governments that Merkel has led, all of these governments have in We have acted in accordance with the principles of our relationship ever since they were established by David Ben Gurion and Konrad Adenauer in 1965. “
Nevertheless, Fischer expects Germany to become “more active” with a view to Israel and the common interests of the two countries. Every future German government must be clear about this: “Germany’s responsibility for our history is an everlasting responsibility for every serious government. It must be clear to every party that wants to govern Germany that this obligation is non-negotiable.”
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