Germany: ‘Failure of equipment promises’

The press comments on the actions of the old and the announcements of the new German government for the export of armaments. Reference to the death of Karolos Papoulias.

“Do politicians take their weapons promises seriously? The new figures for the German government’s military arms exports speak for themselves,” she said. Thisddeutsche newspaper “The outgoing ruling coalition (CDU / CSU and SPD) has set a record of nine million euros in arms exports with permits for questionable agreements. The government had committed in the government agreement of 2018 not to do exactly that (…) But at the end of its term it did not pay much attention “.

As the commentary notes, this is precisely the attitude of German politics. “The country wants to defend peace, but at the same time it does not want to relinquish lucrative assignments to arms companies. And so the Federal Security Council, including former Finance Minister Olaf Soltz, quickly gave the green light for large orders. Leading NGOs have blamed Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi for serious human rights abuses, and the new coalition government (SPD, FDP and Greens) in its government agreement says “Weapons for non-EU and NATO countries, stricter export controls. And, of course, ‘no’ to armaments for those involved in the Yemeni war.

Pandemic: In search of lost objectivity

The management of the pandemic and the way it is reflected in the public debate in Germany is mentioned in a comment in the financial newspaper Handelsblatt, who observes: “Sometimes public debate in Germany is reminiscent of America: Black or white. For or against me. Interest in the other’s point of view is lost, as is objectivity. On both sides – vaccinated and unvaccinated. Maybe nothing else upsets those who refuse to be vaccinated out of the moral outrage of those who have been vaccinated, yet an atmosphere of moral rigor also hinders the debate that society urgently needs to overcome this crisis.

No one doubts that the overriding interest is ultimately overcoming the pandemic. It is also undeniable that this goal can probably be achieved through the highest possible vaccination rate. (…) Of course a free state must first try to persuade. But even the much-publicized Swedish model (pandemic management), which, albeit temporarily, succeeded without state coercion, could only work because citizens were aware of individual responsibility. “But even in such a model, the right ratio is required.”

K. Papoulias: Struggles for national unity – Criticism of the attitude during the crisis

The death of the former President of the Republic Karoulos Papoulias is mentioned by Frankfurter General newspaper notes: “Karolos Papoulias has always fought for social cohesion and national unity. He held the highest state office in Greece from 2005 to 2015 – and during the financial and economic crisis. The fact that he supported the austerity measures that “During the parade in October 2012, protesters insulted him, calling him a ‘traitor’.”

FAZ reports in closing: “He was a founding member of PASOK and one of the closest associates of former Prime Minister Andreas Papandreou. He was born in 1929. During the junta of the colonels (1967-1974) he lived in exile in Germany, where he studied law in Munich and “Cologne. He died on Sunday at the age of 92.”

Dimitra Kyranoudi

SOURCE: Deutsche Welle