Today is about the tense meeting of the federal government at Schloss Meseberg.
About Saxony's international ambition.
And about the possible split in the left.
Cabinet retreat: Only hesitantly facing the future
Suddenly there is talk again of the coalition agreement.
SPD General Secretary Kevin Kühnert spoke about it on Sunday evening on ZDF, as did Green Party leader Omid Nouripour on the same channel.
But who remembers the now completely dusty paper?
It was drafted in late 2021, before Russia's attack on Ukraine that changed everything.
The plans of the traffic light coalition also changed as a result of the war in Ukraine.
The war consumes not only large sums of money, but also the attention of the political class and the public.
Although it is urgently needed, it is difficult to concentrate on future issues: on climate-friendly management, the turnaround in transport, digitization.
In order to make progress on these issues, the federal government met yesterday for a
retreat at Meseberg Castle
;
it continues today.
It turns out that it is not as easy to think about the coalition agreement as a basis, as Kühnert and Nouripour suggested in their statements yesterday.
A lot has happened since it was set up.
The smallest party in the traffic light alliance,
the FDP, wants to distinguish itself after four lost state elections
, especially
against plans by the Greens
.
In turn, little has happened in Chancellor Olaf Scholz's communication behavior: he looks at the disputes for too long.
The question of whether the European Union should decide to ban internal combustion engines from the year 2035 was not on the official program of the conference, although EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen
was a guest in Meseberg.
The FDP rejects the project and stops the EU with its veto.
On the sidelines, Meseberg is said to have talked about it.
Afterwards von der Leyen spoke of a
"constructive dialogue"
, Scholz expressed himself similarly.
But my colleague Serafin Reiber, who was also in Meseberg, heard different sounds.
He says: "FDP and Greens have become so entangled that an early agreement is unlikely."
Yesterday, in an interview with the "heute-journal", Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP) reaffirmed his no to the end of the combustion engine to be on the safe side.
He also said that his party was "very constructive" - but he sounded very different.
Federal government in Meseberg: The magic has vanished in the magic castle
From Dresden to Brussels and into the world
Today Ursula von der Leyen has something to do with Germany again, this time she is meeting
the Prime Minister of Saxony,
Michael Kretschmer, in Brussels.
She receives the
Saxon state government
for their
foreign cabinet meeting
.
The topics are not that different from those in Meseberg.
The Saxons have also taken on economic policy issues.
Among other things, they want to talk about the "European Chips Act", the Saxon raw materials strategy and the question of how international specialists can be won over to Saxony.
The federal state is
the third largest location in Europe
for microelectronics companies and the fifth largest in the world, which is why it is known as »
Silicon Saxony
«.
The term suggests that Saxony can reasonably keep up with California's Silicon Valley, but it leads in the wrong direction.
Of course, the Saxon companies cannot compete with the tech giants of the real valley.
In addition, the ambition should not be to emulate US companies, but to
be different
.
European companies shouldn't be too afraid of the Inflation Reduction Act, which was passed in the US last summer to reduce inflation.
Yes, US President Joe Biden wants to use the billion-euro investment package to promote domestic production, including in strategically important sectors such as microelectronics.
But that can and should be an incentive for the European competition.
If the countries of the EU do not hinder each other with their national interests, but network intelligently, they can compete with self-confidence.
Dispute over Inflation Reduction Act: Machine builders warn of subsidy races
Left Party: Division as an opportunity
Today the Left Party
meets for a committee meeting
.
Chairman Martin Schirdewan will address the press at 1 p.m.
The party has had another
troubled weekend
.
Sahra Wagenknecht, the most prominent representative of the left, once again sharpened her criticism of the party in an interview with the "Tagesspiegel".
Wagenknecht has been a member of the Bundestag for Die Linke since 2009, but has announced that he no longer wants to run for the party.
In the interview, she explains this step.
The differences between her and the Left Board are "so great now that the idea of how it should come together again overwhelms my imagination".
My colleague Timo Lehmann, who reports on the Left Party for SPIEGEL, believes that a
split in the party is inevitable
.
There could even be an opportunity: if Wagenknecht actually founds its own party, it could take away part of the AfD's supporters, and the left itself could win over disappointed Greens and SPD voters.
"If everything stays the way it is," writes Timo Lehmann, "the prospects are definitely bleak."
Wagenknecht dispute: why the split in the left is inevitable
You can find news and background information on the war in Ukraine here:
The latest developments:
The leadership in Kiev wants verdicts against those responsible for the war.
Wagner mercenary shortages.
And: Finland speaks of “hard power” against Russia.
"The connections were cut from one day to the next":
Russia has been at war with Ukraine for a year, paralyzing science as well.
Some researchers rebel.
»Russia has lost the energy battle«:
Since Russia's attack on Ukraine, the West has been engaged in a showdown with Moscow on the energy markets.
For a long time it looked as if the Kremlin could win - but the tide has turned, says IEA boss Fatih Birol.
Here is the current quiz of the day
The starting question today: since when has more people died in Germany per year than are born?
The losers of the day...
...are not confirmed yet.
But
there are rumours
.
Two could get it.
The Michelin Guide for France 2023 is presented today.
The
famous restaurant guide
awards stars for particularly outstanding culinary achievements.
Even getting a star is considered a great honor.
Only the very best restaurants get three stars.
The Michelin Guide was invented in France and first appeared at the opening of the World Exhibition in Paris on April 14, 1900. Now to the rumours: two famous three-star restaurants are said to
lose one of their stars
.
Germany and the Michelin Guide last year: more stars than ever before
The latest news from the night
Train station master in Greece faces life imprisonment:
He sent two trains on a collision course - and thus triggered a devastating accident: The train station master in Larisa, Greece, could face a long prison sentence.
There were riots in Athens.
According to environmentalists, dolphin hunters also kill mother animals and young:
The annual drive hunt for dolphins in Japan is strictly observed by animal rights activists.
Now a group has raised serious allegations against the fishermen: It's about breastfeeding mother animals.
Clear victory for Prime Minister Kallas' party:
The trend was already clear - then the numbers came in the night: Prime Minister Kaja Kallas clearly won the election in Estonia with her party.
She set a record in her own constituency.
The SPIEGEL + recommendations for today
How Ukraine's economy defies Putin:
Russia's president wanted to bomb Ukraine into darkness and despair.
But the economy keeps going.
The shelves in the supermarkets are full, citizens are donating their salaries to the army.
How do Ukrainians do it?
How can I save our network?
It is particularly important for the self-employed to exchange ideas.
Matthias is all the more annoyed that his initiative has hardly met with any interest.
What is he doing wrong?
The on-off e-bike:
When the battery is empty, an e-bike feels uncomfortably sluggish.
The Lemo One is different: If necessary, it converts into a normal bicycle – with a simple trick.
Bonds are now a worthwhile investment again:
For a long time, government and corporate bonds were seen as slow sellers.
However , the turnaround in interest rates and economically uncertain times are making fixed - interest securities attractive again .
I wish you a good start into the day.
Yours, Susanne Beyer, Author of the Editor-in-Chief