Chancellor Friedrich Merz has said Russia’s president is trying to “intimidate and instill fear” and is waging an “information war” against Germany. Meanwhile, electric cars are set to get a tax break. More on DW.
Merz calls for scrapping of EU combustion-engine ban
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Monday spoke in favor of scrapping the EU’s 2035 deadline for ending new combustion-engine vehicle sales.
The move comes as the EU pledged to fast-track a review of the 2035 target after pressure from carmakers.
Merz spoke with German broadcaster NTV, ahead of a meeting on Thursday with representatives from the automotive industry, saying that he thought the EU ban was “wrong.”
“I don’t want Germany to be one of the countries supporting this wrong ban,” Merz said.
Merz noted that diesel engines are still needed for truck manufacturing and that it would be a “serious mistake” for Germany not to be able to conduct research in this area.
The German chancellor also expressed hope that synthetic fuels could be developed in the coming years which would allow combustion engines to run “in an environmentally friendly manner.”
“We should not ban, we should enable technologies, and that is my goal,” he said.
Merz said the issue was “still being discussed” with his junior coalition partners, the center-left Social Democrats (SPD), as environment minister Carsten Schneider was “not yet convinced” about the need to abandon the target.
Merz said he hopes the government would come to an agreed position before Thursday’s auto sector meeting.
Germany’s influential automotive giants, such as Volkswagen, BMW and Mercedes-Benz, have all cast doubt on the EU target.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of conducting a “hybrid war” against Germany, saying Moscow’s campaign extends beyond Ukraine to target all of Europe.
“He is waging an information war against us. He is waging a military war against Ukraine and this war is directed against all of us,” Merz told broadcaster NTV on Monday.
He said Putin aims to undermine Europe’s political order and that supporting Ukraine is in Germany’s interest to defend open, liberal societies.
Asked whether Putin was waging war on Germany, Merz replied: “He is waging a hybrid war against us.”
The chancellor linked recent drone incidents across Europe to Russian intimidation efforts, saying, “We will not be intimidated and we will defend ourselves effectively.”
Merz said he is considering speaking directly with Putin but noted that “every attempt to talk to him at the moment is ending in even tougher attacks on Ukraine.”
He added that he had a heated exchange with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban at last week’s EU meeting in Copenhagen after Orban accused Germany of avoiding negotiations.
Merz said he reminded Orban that Putin responded to his own visits to Kyiv and Moscow last year by bombing a children’s hospital in Kyiv.
There are now almost daily attacks on critical infrastructure in Europe. In the same week that drones were spotted over several European airports, a cyberattack against security software used by many of those same hubs, including Berlin Airport, left passengers and personnel scrambling. At the same time, Germany’s Deutsche Bahn rail service experienced the latest in a series of high-level sabotage incidents.
For more news on Russia’s war in Ukraine, check out our blog here.
Source: https://www.dw.com/en/germany-news-merz-says-putin-waging-hybrid-war/live-74247283
