Cem Özdemir, the Premier of Baden-Württemberg (Green Party), warned the Alternative for Germany (AfD) that his state would intervene if the party tried to violate constitutional principles in Saxony-Anhalt. Speaking to RTL and ntv, Özdemir stated, “If the AfD attempts to enforce Russian, foreign law here, they will meet our fierce resistance.” He emphasized the commitment to German legal principles, declaring, “The Russian constitution does not apply here, no Trump law, no Erdogan law, no Chinese law-only German law, only the rule of law, only the German constitution. Nothing else.”
Despite this stern warning regarding rule of law, Özdemir also made clear that a state government led by the AfD in Saxony-Anhalt would still have to be accepted. He noted that the state parliament would decide who becomes the Premier, but added, “And whoever that person is, we will work together.” However, he immediately tempered this by insisting: “If there is even the slightest violation of our constitution or our laws, Baden-Württemberg will do everything to prevent it.”
Furthermore, Özdemir renewed his demand for a ban procedure against the extremist, nationalist faction of the AfD. He dismissed the party’s proposal to reduce the population to 60 million as absurd, stating, “And the Constitutional Court must review that.” Even so, he acknowledged that this legal examination does not absolve politics of the task of analyzing why voters are supporting the AfD in the first place-voters who, in his view, should not be. Concluding with a critical national observation, he lamented that “when I look at Berlin, I must unfortunately say they still haven’t grasped the gravity of the situation, considering the ongoing disputes.”
