Merkel successor AKK calls for German ‘climate consensus’

July 07, 2019

In her first summer interview with public broadcaster ZDF as leader of the Christian Democrats (CDU), Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer called on Bundestag parties to agree on measures to reduce emissions by 2030. Climate change has split parties, as well as Germany’s government, in which Angela Merkel and the CDU share power with the Christian Social Union (CSU), its Bavarian sister party, and the Social Democrats (SPD).

Read more: A conservative road map for Germany after Merkel

“We need a national climate consensus,” Kramp-Karrenbauer, who is sometimes called AKK, told ZDF. She said that, after lawmakers return from what Germans call their summer pause, she would reach out to parties to come to a “common solution.”

Read more: Can AKK still cut it as chancellor?

Many members of the CDU, CSU and opposition Free Democrats disagree with a proposal by SPD Environment Minister Svenja Schulze to regulate emitters of carbon dioxide and introduce fees. AKK hasn’t committed to the plan. “CO2 must cost something,” she told ZDF on Sunday, but added that she had “not personally determined” if she would back the environment minister.

‘A huge burden’

AKK said the SPD must support efforts to install CDU Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen as head of the European Commission. EU leaders nominated von der Leyen after they were unable to agree on the candidacy of CSU MEP Manfred Weber, who the conservative bloc of parties in the European Parliament had proposed for Commission president.

“If Ursula von der Leyen doesn’t get the necessary majority in the European Parliament, partly because of the SPD’s actions, that would be a huge burden on the work of the government and the coalition,” she said.

Read more: Germany’s AKK travels to Israel in first overseas visit as CDU leader

The SPD has increasingly lost support after agreeing to back Merkel’s governments in 2013 and again in 2017, leaving members divided over whether the party should stay in government or join the opposition to return to power. Many voters have abandoned ship for the Left Party or the Greens.

Read more: Most Germans find AKK unfit to replace Angela Merkel, poll finds

AKK also said she’d consider sending troops to Syria to fight the Islamic State, as requested by the US envoy for the anti-IS coalition, James Jeffrey, in an interview with the Welt am Sonntag newspaper published on Sunday. Going beyond the Bundeswehr’s current mandate — to support the coalition via reconnaissance, refueling and training — which ends in October, could further strain ties with the SPD, which has traditionally expressed skepticism of German military engagements.

From AKK to Ziemiak: 10 German political names to know in 2019

Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer: Up, up and AKK for the CDU?

We start our list with the name that’s most difficult for foreigners to pronounce. AKK, as Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer is often known, has taken over from Angela Merkel as head of the Christian Democratic Union and must try to heal divisions between the party’s conservative and centrist wings. It’s a crucial task, one which may affect whether Merkel sees out the remainder of her term as chancellor.

From AKK to Ziemiak: 10 German political names to know in 2019

Robert Habeck: Bringing Greens even more into the mainstream?

The possible threat to Merkel is down to a new generation of pragmatic, stylish leaders embodied by no one better than Green party co-leader Robert Habeck. His influence has led many people in Germany to talk about conservative-Green coalitions as being the way of the future. Habeck will be instrumental in determining the course the environmentalists choose to take in 2019.

From AKK to Ziemiak: 10 German political names to know in 2019

Michael Kretschmer: Can he keep Saxony safe for Merkel?

Of the four regional elections in 2019, the one in Saxony is arguably the most significant. Saxony has always been a conservative stronghold. The CDU has led every government there since German reunification in 1990. But incumbent State Premier Michael Kretschmer (above right) faces a tough re-election battle, with the CDU polling only around 30 percent. A loss here would have major repercussions.

From AKK to Ziemiak: 10 German political names to know in 2019

Kevin Kühnert: Will he persuade the SPD to ditch the grand coalition?

Many Social Democrats are unhappy with the party’s “GroKo” coalitions with Merkel’s conservatives, seeing them as a betrayal of Social Democratic values and a reason for the SPD’s precipitous plummet in the polls. The party is scheduled to re-evaluate its current partnership at the end of 2019, so expect to hear a lot from the leader of the No GroKo movement, youth chapter leader Kevin Kühnert.

From AKK to Ziemiak: 10 German political names to know in 2019

Christian Lindner: Will the FDP give Jamaica another shot?

Should the government fall apart, there will be immediate calls for a Jamaica coalition between the conservatives, Greens and the center-right Free Democrats. FDP leader Christian Lindner scuppered that idea in late 2017 after the last election, but has indicated he would be receptive to a tripartite political alliance if Merkel were no longer chancellor. He may play kingmaker in late 2019.

From AKK to Ziemiak: 10 German political names to know in 2019

Bodo Ramelow: First and last Left party state premier?

Another key regional election is in Thuringia, where incumbent Bodo Ramelow is the first and only state premier to come from the Left party, the successor to the socialist party in Communist East Germany. Whether he can fend off challenges from traditional conservatives and far-right populists will say a lot about the future of leftist parties in the economically lagging eastern part of Germany.

From AKK to Ziemiak: 10 German political names to know in 2019

Frank-Walter Steinmeier: Will he have to broker a government again?

The German presidency is largely ceremonial, but when the parties are having trouble forming a government the president springs into action as a mediator. Frank-Walter Steinmeier did this after Merkel struggled to form a coalition following the 2017 election. Should the government break down in late 2019, the pragmatic SPD man and former German foreign minister would be called on again.

From AKK to Ziemiak: 10 German political names to know in 2019

Jörg Urban: Can the AfD win outright in Saxony?

The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party heads into 2019 with some of the wind taken out of its sails after the anti-immigration populists were overtaken by the Greens in popularity. The Saxony regional election on September 1 represents the best chance for the AfD to regain lost momentum, and the party hopes regional chairman Jörg Urban can lead them to an outright victory.

From AKK to Ziemiak: 10 German political names to know in 2019

Manfred Weber: Moderate conservative to lead the EU?

Manfred Weber is not only leader of the conservative European People’s Party (EPP) bloc in the European Parliament; he’s also the EPP’s candidate for the European Commission presidency in the European election in late May, making him the favorite to replace Jean-Claude Juncker. A smooth political operator, Weber would be the first German to hold Europe’s highest political office since 1967.

From AKK to Ziemiak: 10 German political names to know in 2019

Paul Ziemiak: Will a Polish-born youngster drag the CDU to the right?

He’s 33, staunchly conservative, social-media savvy, Polish-born and the new operational head of Merkel’s conservative Christian Democratic Union. His election as CDU general secretary reflects both the party’s diversity and its desire to freshen up and have a counterweight to the centrists Merkel and Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer. But will he fall afoul of his two female bosses?

Author: Jefferson Chase (Berlin)