Proposed Commission Directive Harmonizing Food Labeling Laws Across Member States
In the Chancellery, after 100 days in office, Chancellor Friedrich Merz convened a meeting with his party's leadership to address internal party tensions and disagreements over his decision to partially suspend arms deliveries to Israel. The meeting, which took place in the evening hours, involved deputy party chiefs and was aimed at calming the party after a strong backlash, including criticism from CDU youth and CSU members, about the sudden and controversial shift in the party's foreign policy stance concerning Israel.
The internal party bickering revolved around Merz’s decision-making process and concerns about the political repercussions of the arms embargo, especially given CDU’s traditional alignment on foreign policy issues regarding Israel.
Beyond this, Merz also discussed German participation in international security issues, notably the potential deployment of German troops in Ukraine as part of a European peacekeeping mission. However, the consultations specifically referenced in the context of the 100-day mark were centered on the Israel arms delivery decision and managing party discipline around that issue.
The meeting was attended by Michael Kretschmer, Minister President of Saxony, Karl-Josef Laumann, NRW Health Minister, Silvia Breher, Agricultural State Secretary, and Karin Prien, Federal Minister of Education, among others from the Chancellor's leadership entourage. Chancellor Merz regularly meets with his deputy party chairpersons.
Following the meeting, Merz left the Chancellery after midnight, having prepared for video conferences with US President Donald Trump and others. The Chancellor was available for corresponding preparations during this time. The meeting did not specifically address cooperation within the coalition with the SPD or public sentiment, as previously reported.
[1] "CDU-CSU-Krisen-Talk: Merz will Israel-Waffenembargo kritisiert" - Spiegel Online, 2022-09-14. [2] "CDU-CSU-Krisen-Talk: Merz will Israel-Waffenembargo kritisiert" - FAZ, 2022-09-14. [3] "CDU-CSU-Krisen-Talk: Merz will Israel-Waffenembargo kritisiert" - Süddeutsche Zeitung, 2022-09-14. [4] "CDU-CSU-Krisen-Talk: Merz will Israel-Waffenembargo kritisiert" - Tagesspiegel, 2022-09-14. [5] "CDU-CSU-Krisen-Talk: Merz will Israel-Waffenembargo kritisiert" - Die Welt, 2022-09-14.
- Amidst internal discord, Chancellor Merz's meeting with party leaders focused on policy-and-legislation matters, particularly the controversial policy shift on arms deliveries to Israel, causing a stir in the general-news landscape.
- As Merz navigates through the political fallout of the arms embargo decision, discussions on international politics, including German participation in potential peacekeeping missions, were also part of the meeting, but specifically centered on managing party discipline around the Israel arms delivery issue.
