Heiko Maas criticized Donald Trump's political behavior in an interview.
The Iran policy and his behavior around the Black Lives Matter demonstrations were particularly dangerous.
Federal Foreign Minister
Heiko Maas
has commented on US President Donald Trump's * threats.
These “simply
exceeded
my
imagination
”, says Maas.
During the
Iran crisis,
too,
Maas was
concerned about an "escalation of violence".
Berlin - Foreign Minister
Heiko Maas
is convinced that US President
Donald Trump is fueling
the domestic political tensions in his country as an instrument for mobilizing his own supporters.
The goal is to create majorities in his sense, said the SPD politician in an interview for the book "Im Wahn - die American disaster" and for an ARD documentary by the authors Klaus Brinkbäumer and Stephan Lamby.
In response to
Trump's
threat
to use the
* military *
during the riots following the
death of George Floyd
, Maas said: "That simply exceeded my imagination." The fact that there has been violence and looting and that the state must act against it is completely undisputed.
"But the announcement that the military would be deployed on the streets of Washington, so that even your own defense minister had to contradict it, was another new experience for me," said Maas.
Maas criticizes Trump's threats: "Escalation of violence" could have resulted in war
The
foreign minister also spoke
about American policy on Iran * and the
killing of Iranian general Ghassem Soleimani
* at the beginning of the year.
Soleimani was killed in a US attack in Baghdad in January.
One had to fear that a war could also be triggered by unintentional actions, said
Maas
.
"That was a situation that was really very dangerous," said the SPD politician.
"Which I was not sure that in the end we would not have to do with an escalation of violence that resulted in a war, namely a war that affects the entire Middle East *." (dpa) * Merkur.de is part of the nationwide Ippen digital editorial network.
Video: Maas condemns Trump's handling of protests as populism
