Icon: enlarge
Trump supporters broke police lockdowns at the Capitol
Photo: John Minchillo / AP
Supporters of US President Donald Trump have invaded the Capitol in Washington.
The aim of Trump supporters was apparently to disrupt the confirmation of the US election results at the seat of the American Congress.
President-elect Joe Biden spoke of an "unprecedented attack" on democracy.
US MPs condemned the chaos in the Capitol and politicians around the world criticized the events.
“This is anarchy.
This is an attempted coup, ”said
MP Seth Moulton
.
The congressional session had previously been canceled, at which Joe Biden's victory in the presidential election was to be confirmed.
Democratic
MP Val Demings
wrote on Twitter: “A mob storms the US Capitol to overturn an election.
There is a coup. ”Her colleague
Mark Pocan
accused Trump of
promoting
“ domestic terrorism ”.
The Democratic
MP Ilhan Omar
announced via Twitter that she wanted to initiate impeachment proceedings against Donald Trump.
Prepare relevant documents.
"We cannot allow him to stay in office," she wrote.
It is about preserving the republic.
Several other MPs have also called for Trump to be removed from office.
Trump had recently called on his supporters to move to the Capitol in a speech about alleged fraud in the US presidential election.
The Senate and the House of Representatives are located there.
In his speech he urged tens of thousands of supporters not to put up with the "theft" of the election.
The leading Democrats in the US Congress appealed to Trump to urge the demonstrators he fueled to leave the US Capitol.
"We appeal to President Trump to urge all demonstrators to leave the US Capitol and the Capitol grounds immediately," said the House spokeswoman
Nancy Pelosi
and Senate Democratic Minority Leader
Chuck Schumer
.
Republicans also condemn the unrest
The leading Republican in the House of Representatives,
Kevin McCarthy
, condemned the unrest at the seat of the US Parliament.
What was happening was "un-American," he told CBS News.
"I'm disappointed.
I'm sad.
This is not how our country should be. ”McCarthy is an ally of Trump.
US Vice President
Mike Pence also
condemned the unrest.
"Peaceful protest is the right of every American, but this attack on our Capitol will not be tolerated and those involved will be held accountable with all the harshness of the law," Pence tweeted.
Internationally, too, politicians observed the unrest with concern.
EU Council leader Charles Michel
expressed dismay.
"Watching the scenes tonight in Washington, DC is a shock," Michel wrote on Twitter.
The US Congress is "a temple of democracy."
The
President of the European Parliament, David Sassoli, made a similar statement
: "Deeply unsettling scenes from the US Capitol tonight."
The
EU Foreign Affairs Representative Josep Borrel
I wrote: "In the eyes of the world, American democracy appears under siege tonight."
He spoke of an "invisible attack on US democracy, its institutions and the rule of law."
Maas and Röttgen worried
The German Foreign Minister
Heiko Maas (
SPD
)
reacted with concern.
Maas wrote on Twitter: "Trump and his supporters should finally accept the decision of the American electorate and stop trampling democracy." The enemies of democracy would be happy about the "incredible images" from Washington.
Riotous words turned into violent acts.
"The contempt for democratic institutions has devastating effects."
Norbert Röttgen
(
CDU
)
, Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee in the Bundestag, sees the Republicans before a fundamental decision.
"Now is the last time Republicans can choose between democracy and Trump," he tweeted.
Trump hounded against the institutions of democracy.
French Foreign Minister
Jean-Yves Le Drian
wrote: "The violence against the American institutions is a serious attack on democracy." He condemned the riots.
Austria's Chancellor
Sebastian Kurz
wrote: "Shocked by the scenes in Washington." Now a peaceful and orderly transfer of power must be ensured.
Italy's Prime Minister
Giuseppe Conte
was also concerned.
"Violence is incompatible with the exercise of political rights and democratic freedoms," he tweeted.
But he trusts in the strength of the institutions of the United States.
British Prime Minister
Boris Johnson
condemned the unrest.
"Shameful scenes in the US Congress," tweeted Johnson.
"The United States stands for democracy all over the world, and now it is crucial that there is a peaceful and orderly transfer of power."
NATO Secretary General
Jens Stoltenberg
spoke of "shocking scenes in Washington, DC".
"The result of this democratic election must be respected," tweeted the Norwegian.
Icon: The mirror
ptz / dpa / AFP