The German Defense Minister, Christine Lambrecht, announced her resignation on Monday, after two weeks of being the target of criticism. and leaving open the debate on his succession in the middle of the Ukrainian war and with pressure on Germany to contribute more heavy military material to the conflict.
The resignation message has earned Lambrecht fresh criticism for blaming the media.
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“Today I asked the Federal Chancellor for the removal of the post of Federal Minister of Defense. The focus of the media on me makes it difficult for professional information and discussion about soldiers, the federal army and security policy issues,” the minister said in a statement.
“He doesn’t even know how to resign,” headlined a comment in the business newspaper Handelsblatt. Other media also expressed themselves in similar terms.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz, for his part, thanked Lambrecht for his work and said that it was not the day to talk about the succession. The deputy spokeswoman for the Government, Christine Hoffmann, had previously said that the name of Lambrecht’s successor or successor will be known “soon” without making any further details.
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One of the tasks of his successor or successor will be make a decision on the shipment to Ukraine of Leopard-type armored fighting cars after Germany already contributed armored defense Gepard and Marder.
Berlin insists on not making solo outings and making any announcement of arms shipments to Ukraine together with other partners.
Criticized since before the war
The trigger that led to the intensification of a rain of criticism that had been falling on Lambrecht for months was a video recorded on New Year’s Eve and broadcast on social networks in which, amid the noise of New Year’s firecrackers He took stock of the year.
Lambrecht, in the message, recalled that there was currently a war in Europe and said that this had given him many impressions and meetings with many people whom he wanted to thank.
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The video was seen as tactless and also from Lambrecht’s lack of understanding of the responsibility implied by the career he was in charge of, and other episodes of his management began to be remembered insistently.
The Defense portfolio has always been difficult in times of peace, but it is even more so in times of war.
Before the war began, but when there was already a movement of Russian troops on the border, Lambrecht announced the shipment of 5,000 helmets to Ukraine, which constantly asked the West for military aid.
Given the dimensions of the Russian threat, the announcement of the shipment of the helmets lent itself to caricatures. Also, the helmets took time to arriveThe war had already started. The issue of the controversial helmets, before the subsequent shipment of the German military to Ukraine, has been somewhat forgotten.
Subsequently, in May 2022, what was called “the case of the helicopter”. Lambrecht was accompanied by her son by helicopter on a troop visit to northern Germany and then traveled together on vacation.
A photo of his son in the helicopter, taken by Lambrecht, was posted on Instagram. Even though some saw in the case of the helicopter an insignificant detail, the truth is that the situation was taken as a starting point to criticize various aspects of Lambrecht’s work.
Lambrecht, a minister far from the troops
His relationship with the troops was not ideal. It was said that he was too foreign to the military theme, that he did little to get into it and that he did not organize enough meetings with the high command.
At the end of 2022, criticism began to emerge that, despite the 100,000 million euro fund for the German army, there was not enough ammunition available for the armored cars and defense systems that were delivered to Ukraine.
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Around all this, from the ranks of the opposition and from the main newspapers of the country began to ask for the resignation of Lambrecht and to say that, especially in times of war, someone more competent was needed for his position.
Who will occupy the controversial position?
It is not yet clear if Scholz will resort only to relieve Lambrecht – for this, in an ideal case, he would need a woman, a Social Democrat and from the German southwest so as not to upset the balance in the Council of Ministers – or if he will proceed to a restructuring broader of your team.
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Among the names being considered are those of the parliamentary commissioner for Army affairs Eva Högl – a woman and a Social Democrat but originally from Berlin – and the deputy Marie-Agner Strack-Zimmermann, defense spokesperson for the Liberal Party (FDP), as well as the co-chairman of the Social Democratic Party (SPD), Lars Klingbeil.
AFP
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