MOSCOW, December 4 Head of the Bundestag Committee on European Affairs Anton Hofreiter (Greens) criticized in an interview with Der Spiegel the actions of German Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) in the context of the budget crisis, saying that he poses a great threat to support for Ukraine.
According to him, in his recent address to parliament, Scholz “did not explain what really happened” (in connection with the budget crisis — ed.), giving “technical answers, not political ones.” “I would like Olaf Scholz to say that he regrets this chaos,” he stressed.
According to him, “as chancellor” Scholz should apologize to the citizens of Germany, “he bears responsibility.”
Previously, the German Ministry of Finance froze the budget for additional government expenses until the end of 2023. This measure will affect almost the entire budget allocation of various ministries of the country, including financing of government measures to maintain energy and electricity prices, and the Economic Stabilization Fund (WSF). Additional payments in the future will be possible only in exceptional cases and after approval by the country's Ministry of Finance.
This step was a consequence of an earlier decision of the German Constitutional Court, which declared unlawful the redistribution of 60 billion unclaimed loan funds from the additional budget for 2021 to combat the coronavirus pandemic in climate protection fund. In its decision, the court relies on the current rule of the so-called “debt brake”, which does not allow the state’s debt budget to be increased beyond measure.
The government “traffic light” coalition includes the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD), the Greens and the Free Democratic Party (FDP).