Political unrest in Germany
Political unrest in Germany
Political unrest in Germany
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Chancellor Olaf Scholz said in his annual New Year’s speech that elections in Germany “will not be conducted through social media owners. “
By Christopher F. Schuetze
Reporting from Berlin
The annual New Year’s Eve speech by Germany’s chancellor is traditionally heavy on national unity, reflections on the past 12 months and calls for optimism.
While all of those ingredients were provided in this year’s televised speech via Chancellor Olaf Scholz, it also included an indirect reference to a non-German with a great, some say confusing, interest in the country’s politics: Elon Musk.
Scholz’s New Year’s speech, which will likely be his last, comes against a backdrop of political turmoil in fashionable Germany and developing polarization in Europe. The tone of his speech reflected the difficult situations facing the country as it grapples with stagnant economic growth, with the chancellor calling for “solidarity” while acknowledging that life had become more expensive for many.
The three-party coalition he forced in 2021 collapsed in November and Scholz, a center-left Social Democrat, lost a vote of confidence this month, triggering federal elections to be held on February 23.
As the German public prepares to go to the polls, Musk, President-elect Donald J. Trump spoke on social media and in a newspaper op-ed about the far-right Alternative for Germany party. . Parent or AfD. Su support for the group, which has ties to neo-Nazis and is monitored through domestic intelligence facilities because it is extremist, has unsettled lawmakers and drawn complaints from the most sensible leaders across the political spectrum.
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