In the face of US President-elect Donald Trump’s demand to NATO member states to spend five percent of their gross domestic product (GDP) on defense, FDP chief Christian Lindner has warned of a “bidding war.”
“If there are new goals agreed upon, then Germany will have to take responsibility for that” Lindner told the TV station “Welt” on Wednesday. “What I don’t support is this immediate bidding war, which is plucked from the air.”
Lindner also criticized Vice Chancellor and Green Party candidate Robert Habeck, who had previously advocated for a goal of 3.5 percent of GDP. “The current economy minister is fabricating in interviews, talking about 3.5 percent, but his own party knows nothing about it. It’s not in the election program, and everything is supposed to be financed through debt” Lindner said.
For the FDP, it is clear that the “administrative apparatus” must be slimmed down. “Less bureaucracy, fewer authorities, fewer redistributive measures, fewer incentives in the citizen’s allowance, fewer green climate subsidies.” Then, education, infrastructure, defense, and relief can be financed, Lindner said.
The FDP chief advocated for negotiating with Trump from a position of economic strength and unideological sobriety. However, for this, Germany must first regain its strength and be taken seriously internationally. “It’s about something we can expect from Mr. Trump in the coming years, namely hard demands to enter into negotiations. We must prepare ourselves for that” Lindner said. “The most important thing we can do is to be taken seriously again.”
Currently, Germany is perceived in the world through “moral green sermons” and economic weakness, the former finance minister said. “I would like to turn it around, so that Germany is taken seriously because of its economic strength and because we argue soberly, our values and interests. Then, we will find agreements” Lindner said.