Opposition MPs called for the resignation of German Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht over her “embarrassing” New Year’s Eve message.
Germany’s defense minister, Christine Lambrecht, has been roundly criticized after publishing a New Year’s Eve greeting in which she touched upon the ongoing conflict in Ukraine against the backdrop of festive fireworks in Berlin. The message was broadly slammed as an “embarrassment” and prompted opposition politicians and some journalists to call for her resignation.
In a video published on her personal Instagram page on Saturday night, Lambrecht can be seen standing in the middle of a Berlin street, with loud fireworks blasting behind her.
“A war is raging in the middle of Europe,” the minister says at one point, without even mentioning Russia or Ukraine. Lambrecht then goes on to say that over the past year she has had “many encounters with interesting and great people” and has received “many special impressions” in connection to the ongoing conflict. “I would like to say a heartfelt thank you for that,” she adds.
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A member of the Bundestag’s Defense Committee, Serap Guler, branded the minister’s message an “embarrassment” that only added to a pile of her previous alleged mistakes. “Every additional minute the chancellor [Olaf Scholz] still holds on to this minister and further damages the reputation of our country would lie at his door,” said the lawmaker from the Conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU) – Germany’s largest opposition party.
It is not just about the image of the minister herself, but the perception of Germany in Europe and around the world, Guler warned, wondering “who is supposed to take us seriously anymore?”
Her words were echoed by another CDU MP, Roderich Kiesewetter, who called Lambrecht’s message “inappropriate” in an interview with the Tagesspiegel daily. “It strengthens the distrust… towards Germany that is unfortunately taking hold in Europe and internationally,” he said.
The CDU’s former leader, Armin Laschet, also lashed out at the German government over Lambrecht’s message. “Have they lost their minds in Berlin?” he wrote in a Twitter post, wondering if Scholz “really does not care about Germany’s image in Europe and the world.”
The government has refused to comment on the situation, with deputy government spokesperson Christiane Hoffmann telling journalists “I don’t see any reason to evaluate this now.”
The CDU has been calling for Lambrecht’s resignation for months. Scholz has so far supported the defense chief, and in an interview with the SZ newspaper back in December, he said Lambrecht had been a “first-class defense minister.”
Funny how this causes offence but the German govt sending weapons to Ukraine, to be used against Russia, somehow isn’t? They should thank their lucky stars, they are not at war with Russia.
They are. By proxy. That is what is wrong here. She admitted to the world how benificial it has been. War mongerers they are indeed.
Now…watch the celebratory ‘fireworks’ be transformed into the ‘Fireworks of War’ in real time!
Germany would do well to cancel sending weapons, ammunition, and monetary aid to the J3wi$h State of Ukraine!
And…(not to be lost on their current energy shortages) lift the sanctions on all Russians, inform NATO that they will no longer be a party to the Zio-Communist attempts to overthrow Russia via J3wi$h Ukraine, and place a bid to restore Russian Oil & Gas to Germany via a direct on-land pipeline that can be patrolled and guarded from Zio-Terrorist from Zio-Communist J3wi$h-led Ukraine!
alexander mercouris on rumble.com ( youtube etc) on jan 3rd.
Poland is mobilizing army