“Ignore Russian interests”: Linke members want to throw Ramelow out of the party
Created: 12/21/2022 11:38 am
By: Helena Gries
Bodo Ramelow (Die Linke), Prime Minister of Thuringia, is facing opposition from his party.
(Archive photo) © Martin Schutt/dpa
Because of his attitude in the Ukraine war, members of the Left Party have applied for Bodo Ramelow's expulsion from the party.
His appearance split the party.
Berlin – Headwind for Thuringia's Prime Minister Bodo Ramelow: Two party members of the party Die Linke in Saxony are calling for the 66-year-old to be expelled from the party.
A corresponding application has been received by the state arbitration commission in Thuringia, reports the news magazine
Spiegel
.
The reason for the application was Ramelow's attitude in the Ukraine war.
By endorsing arms deliveries to the Ukraine, he accepts the annihilation of mankind and thus opposes the line of the party leadership.
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Ukraine dispute: Left-wing members want to exclude Ramelow from the party
In particular, Ramelow should be excluded from the Left Party because he "divides it even more with his appearance and endangers its existence," according to the Left Party report.
In the past few months, there have been repeated conflicts within the party due to disagreements over the Ukraine conflict.
Because of Ramelow's attitude, "Russian interests are repeatedly ignored" and the danger of mankind's annihilation in a nuclear war increases.
The Prime Minister of Thuringia accepts this with his attitude, it is said.
As recently as November, Ramelow had caused outrage within his party over his stance on arms deliveries to Ukraine.
Left leader Martin Schirdewan told
Funke Mediengruppe
newspapers that arms deliveries were not the party's position.
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The application will first be formally examined by the arbitration committee by mid-January and Ramelow will be asked to comment.
The rules of arbitration stipulate that proceedings must be opened in the case of "admissible and not obviously unfounded applications".
Application for exclusion from the Left Party: Ramelow reacts calmly
Ramelow himself, however, was calm.
According to a government spokesman, the left-wing politician said: "I took note of the letter with the request for expulsion from the party.
It is completely unclear what the two people specifically accuse me of.
In some places, the letter sounds like a justification for Russia's war of aggression.
You can criticize my position on arms sales to Ukraine, but you also mustn't overlook who started the war.
I look forward to the proceedings with equanimity.” (hg)