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Christine Lambrecht visiting troops in Niger
Photo: Kay Nietfeld / dpa
Now it should happen quickly, according to SPIEGEL information, Federal Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht wants to give up her post at her own request.
After a little more than a year in office, the SPD politician has recently come under increasing criticism.
In addition to the delayed modernization of the Bundeswehr, Lambrecht is accused of lack of planning and being overwhelmed.
A non-exhaustive chronology of their unfortunate statements and actions.
Ski vacation in Ischgl instead of a visit to the troops
Shortly after taking office in December 2021, Lambrecht caused astonishment when she canceled the Christmas trip to one of the foreign assignments that had already been prepared, which is a must for every minister.
In mid-December, Lambrecht flies to Lithuania for a few hours to join the army, then she says goodbye to Ischgl for a skiing holiday over Christmas and New Year.
5000 helmets for Ukraine
A few weeks before the Russian attack on Ukraine, Lambrecht announced in January 2022 that he would deliver 5,000 protective helmets from Bundeswehr stocks at Kiev's request for weapons.
That was the "very clear signal" that Berlin was one hundred percent on the side of Ukraine, said Lambrecht.
Kyiv had hoped for more in supporting its soldiers' equipment.
The ambassador at the time, Andriy Melnyk, spoke of a "purely symbolic gesture".
The delivery is "just a drop in the ocean, it's no consolation at all."
»Helicopter Affair«
In April 2022, Lambrecht visited a Bundeswehr unit in northern Germany by helicopter.
The next day and after an overnight stay in a hotel, we went with a car and bodyguards to an Easter holiday on the nearby island of Sylt.
After the son published a photo of himself in the helicopter ready to fly on Instagram, Lambrecht had to defend himself against harsh criticism that she had only organized the visit to the troops in order to get as conveniently as possible to her vacation destination Sylt by helicopter.
It also emerged that the minister had regularly taken her son with her on business trips when she was Minister of Justice.
Her son had also uploaded photos of these trips to Instagram.
At the time, Lambrecht stated that she had paid the prescribed costs for her son's flight.
When the affair got hotter, however, she announced that she would no longer take her son on business trips.
Even in the SPD, she was reproached at the time for apparently having lost her political instinct and thus causing serious damage.
In the tabloid media, she was unflatteringly dubbed the "helicopter mother" because of the process.
The Forgotten Name
When it was announced that the Bundeswehr would acquire American F-35 fighter jets, Lambrecht caused surprise when she apparently did not know or had forgotten the name of Air Force Chief Ingo Gerhartz standing next to her.
Gerhartz is one of six inspectors on the Military Leadership Council, the Bundeswehr's highest military body.
Failed New Year message
Actually, she just wanted to wish her a happy new year - it turned into a spectacular faux pas: Lambrecht posted a video on her private Instagram account on New Year's Eve that even her party friends found embarrassing and instinctive.
In it, the minister talks about the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine, only to rave about encounters with “interesting and great people” the next moment.
Sometimes the noise from Berlin's firecrackers and New Year's rockets drowns out their words.
The video also causes malice and shame on the Internet and in political competition.
CDU politicians in particular interpret it as evidence that Lambrecht is unsuitable for the post of defense minister.
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