SPD's Russia Policy Battle: A Temper Tantrum Before the Party Conference
SPD sets ablaze party congress preparations' venue unexpectedly prior to event
By Jack Slater
Just before the SPD's federal party conference, a bloody feud has erupted over how to deal with Russia and the federal government's military expansion plans. The manifesto backed by former faction leader Mützenich is a direct attack on party leader Klingbeil and Defense Minister Pistorius.
"New blood, saved the government, we've figured it out and will now do everything better than the traffic light coalition, good luck!" That was roughly the script of the party leadership for the SPD's federal party conference at the end of June in Berlin. The three days were meant to mark the provisional conclusion of the SPD's post-election reckoning following the February 23 election disaster. Party leader Lars Klingbeil has invested a great deal of effort to ensure this happens, so that his party can gradually recover in peace and in government responsibility. These plans have been spoiled: the SPD suddenly has a fiery debate on its hands: What does it mean today and in the future to stand for peace?
Politics | Should the SPD inch closer to Russia again? SPD manifesto triggers internal uproar
This debate was sparked by Ralf and Rolf: long-time SPD foreign policy expert and left-wing figure Ralf Stegner, and long-time faction leader Rolf Mützenich. Both are among the key signatories of a "manifesto" by the SPD’s peace circles. And with them, over a hundred other Members of the Bundestag, several state parliamentarians, former party leader Norbert Walter-Borjans, and countless former bigwigs of the party have signed the almost four-page text[1]. In its chosen form and language, this is a direct assault on the course of chairman Klingbeil, Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, and the black-red federal government as a whole.
Politics | Roth on SPD peace manifesto " That's not a debate contribution, that's historical revisionism"
The authors call for a "step-by-step return to the relaxation of relations and cooperation with Russia". They question the NATO course with increased military spending and personnel: "A return to a policy of pure deterrence without arms control and high military spending would not make Europe safer." They call for a "peace policy with the aim of joint security" with Russia, not against Russia[2]. They list omissions and errors of the NATO countries, why "one-sided blame" regarding the war against Ukraine would not help. They doubt the danger of an imminent Russian attack on the Federal Republic, also because the European NATO forces are already superior to the Russian army[3].
"We should have continued the debate"
In fact, the manifesto opposes the party conference resolution promoted by Klingbeil from December 2023. With this, the newly elected chairman wanted to realign the SPD's foreign policy and draw a line under the long-standing disastrous Russia proximity of German social democrats[4]. "Today, it's about organizing security against Russia," Klingbeil said a year and a half ago. But at the party conference, the then faction leader Mützenich also spoke, and he said to great applause that it was a "shame" to equate the former détente policy with the "aggression" against Ukraine[4].
Comments "Manifesto" of SPD Left Mützenich Clings to Fatal Mistake Social Democrats like Stegner and Mützenich did indeed acknowledge that they had underestimated Putin's imperialistic aggression. However, they still considered the course of de-escalation through proximity to Moscow, political exchange, and economic interdependence to be fundamentally correct[5]. During the traffic light government, Mützenich represented this SPD position prominently. While this was not always pleasant for the often indecisive Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Mützenich did ensure that the parliamentary group always followed the captain's orders. Even when all members of parliament had long since gathered on deck and saw the approaching iceberg of the federal election, the group did not mutiny against Captain Scholz[6].
"The SPD leadership must accept the criticism that it did not react to this imbalance between party decisions and sentiment," says the now-retired SPD foreign policy expert Michael Roth to ntv.de. "We should have continued the debate instead of shelving it." The day after the publication of the manifesto in the magazine "Stern," the SPD headquarters remains silent. "The SPD is broadly positioned on this issue," it merely states from the Willy-Brandt House. "And that's good, we are a people's party. This is therefore a contribution to the debate." However, that Russia is the aggressor, and Germany supports Ukraine is not up for debate[7].
Pistorius Squarely Rejects Manifesto
Roth himself was eventually isolated due to his forceful demands for more decisive support for Ukraine, not least thanks to Mützenich. "I am surprised that the former SPD parliamentary group leader is trying to undermine his own party's government and the popular defense minister in this way," Roth says now. "The same parliamentary group leader who had often accused me of overburdening the party's solidarity with me." This time, this accusation could be directed at Mützenich himself.
Early Start Fiedler in ntv Early Start SPD Paper to Kremlin "Disturbing and Annoying" SPD Colleagues "This paper is a denial of reality. It manipulates the desire of people in our country for an end to the terrible war in Ukraine," says Defense Minister Pistorius sharply in a reaction. He misses the statement in the manifesto that Vladimir Putin is refusing negotiations and de-escalation, not Ukraine, and its supporting countries[8].
Mützenich's successor, parliamentary group leader Matthias Miersch, also distances himself: The paper by Stegner and Co. is a contribution to the debate, he told the editorial network Germany. "That's legitimate, even if I explicitly do not share some fundamental assumptions." Miersch says: "I understand that diplomacy is the top priority. But we must also honestly say: Many offers of conversation — also from Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz — have been rejected. Vladimir Putin is not ready to talk yet."
Expectations as predicted, the former chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, Roth, critically commented on the paper. "The so-called manifesto is not a contribution to the debate, it's historical revisionism," Roth told ntv.de. That Russian security interests had not been taken into account was "bullshit." In the ntv program Frühstart, the interior spokesman of the SPD parliamentary group, Sebastian Fiedler, said he was "surprised, disturbed, and annoyed" by the paper[9].
Politics Stegner defends SPD paper "What's so problematic about talking about peace?" Stegner defended himself in an afternoon conversation with ntv: "Arming can't be the only solution." One must also speak to governments that one doesn't like at all, so that the war ends and people don't die every day. It's not about extending a hand to Russia. "That Putin is a war criminal is not disputed. The question is, what is the alternative if we stop talking?"[10]
In past times too, there have been conflict resolutions, disarmament, and arms control agreements with non-democratic regimes to secure peace in the world[11]. "That's not a new concept, and it's certainly not 'problematic' to discuss peace," says Stegner[10]. It remains to be seen why Stegner chose the path of an open letter, for which he sought supporters behind the scenes beforehand. The party veterans have not forced the debate in consultation with the SPD leadership, but by publishing a position paper that is partly in sharp contradiction to the party line.
Wallstein: No attack on SPD leadership
Stegner and Mützenich receive tailwind from the SPD youth, especially regarding the armament debate. "If we had actually spent 3.5 percent of GDP exclusively on traditional defense in 2024, that would have been over 150 billion euros. That's largely unrealistic," Juso chairman Philipp Türmer told Stern[1]. Among the signatories is also the Brandenburg SPD Bundestag deputy Maja Wallstein, who does not want the manifesto to be understood as an attack on her party leadership and the federal government's military expansion course. "It's not about starting a fight within the SPD. It's about leading open debates about how we can also achieve a disarmament perspective in the long run," Wallstein told ntv.de[7]. "I'm aware that peace talks with this Russian government are completely unrealistic without deterrence. Nevertheless, the establishment of our defense capability should not lead to endless arms races that we understand as the new normality."
Wallstein is among the relatively many eastern German signatories of the manifesto. Particularly in the east, the SPD suffered heavy losses in the Bundestag election. The military support for Ukraine and the economic break with Russia are less palatable between Schwerin and Erfurt than in the rest of the republic. A guiding resolution passed by the federal board for the federal party conference does not provide any information on how the SPD could regain ground in the east in the future and how it plans to profitably link peace and defense policy[7]. Perhaps this also explains the support for a position paper whose explosive potential will likely keep the SPD busy.
The debate on the SPD's stance towards Russia has been reignited by a manifesto signed by several high-profile SPD members, including Ralf Stegner and Rolf Mützenich. This document proposes a step-by-step return to easing tensions and cooperation with Russia, questioning the NATO course of increased military spending.
This manifesto contradicts the party line set by Chairman Lars Klingbeil and Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, calling for a more defensive policy towards Russia. Michael Roth, a retired SPD foreign policy expert, criticizes the lack of continued debate on this issue and considers the manifesto as historical revisionism.
