Immediately after Trump's victory in the US elections, the German Chancellor dismissed Finance Minister Christian Lindner, the chairman of the Free Democratic Party, noting, among other things, that he is not showing readiness to help Ukraine, "which will face a harsh winter." During a press conference in Berlin, Scholz, in particular, stated that Germany would like to increase aid to Ukraine and thereby send a signal to Kyiv after the US elections that "we can be relied upon." "We are increasing our support for Ukraine, which will face a harsh winter... However, the finance minister shows no readiness to implement this proposal for the benefit of our country," he is quoted by focus.de
After an emergency meeting, the delegation of the Free Democratic Party (FDP) announced that they are leaving the chancellery. The first to leave was Justice Minister Buschmann, followed by Education Minister Stark-Watzinger, Transport Minister Volker Wissing, and parliamentary group leader Christian Dürr.
Disagreements in the coalition, which consists of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD), the Free Democratic Party (FDP), and the Union-90 / "Greens," had been present for a long time. Lindner sparked a new round of disputes by calling for an economic shift — reducing taxes for companies, easing climate requirements and regulations, and cutting subsidies and social benefits.
Olaf Scholz will bring the issue of confidence in his government to a vote in the Bundestag on January 15, to have the opportunity to hold early elections in March.
After his resignation, Lindner accused Scholz of the collapse of the red-green-yellow coalition. He emphasized the readiness of the free democrats to take responsibility for Germany's fate in another government after new elections.
Photo: Reuters