Berlin Coalition Talks Teeter Over Antisemitism Dispute in the Left Party
Exploratory talks between the SPD, the Greens and the Left Party (Die Linke) in Berlin are in jeopardy over a dispute about antisemitic currents in the Left. The talks resume today, while Germany's politics is also occupied by the SPD's crisis and an EU summit on Ukraine.
Exploratory talks on a possible red-green-red government coalition in Berlin, Germany's capital, have come close to a dead end. The talks involve the Social Democrats (SPD), the Greens and the Left Party (Die Linke). A dispute over antisemitic currents within the Left Party has put the negotiations in jeopardy, but they are set to continue today. The details come from Berlin Playbook, the morning podcast of the news outlet POLITICO.
Resistance at the federal level
According to the podcast, the coalition is trying to rescue its project even though the SPD and the Greens at the federal level oppose it. Journalist Maximilian Stascheit explains how it intends to do so.
SPD in crisis ahead of party conference
The federal SPD is also struggling with poor poll numbers and internal frustration. A party conference is due in December. Jochen Ott, who leads the SPD group in the parliament of North Rhine-Westphalia, explains in a 200-second interview why his party needs a new vision and how it can find its way out of the crisis.
EU summit and Ukraine
At the European Union summit in Brussels, Europe is facing a harsh reality check on its Ukraine policy, as US support is noticeably crumbling. POLITICO expert Hans von der Burchard sets out which demands Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will bring tomorrow. He also explains why the dispute over the EU budget threatens to block further aid.
The Berlin Playbook podcast is released every morning from 5 a.m. It is produced by Rixa Fürsen, Maximilian Stascheit and the POLITICO team.
