Wagenknecht deplores alleged abuse of citizens' allowance by Ukrainians
The planned founding of the Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance party is being followed closely, not least because the key points of its program are still vague. On RTL and ntv, Wagenknecht advocates a significant tightening of asylum policy. She also calls for gas imports from Russia to be resumed.
In an interview with RTL, former Left Party politician Sahra Wagenknecht questioned the treatment of Ukrainian war refugees. "If Ukrainians go back to their homeland, live there in fact, and only come here to get the benefits, then there are big question marks," said the politician, who is about to found a party named after herself. "I know of specific cases. In my home town, entire houses were rented for Ukrainian refugees and the neighbors were surprised that there was no one there." However, Wagenknecht said she did not want to "generalize" and explicitly acknowledged the suffering of Ukrainians who have lost relatives and their homes.
Wagenknecht criticized the fact that Europe and the USA had not done enough to end the war. Instead, the German government had unilaterally opted for military action, but had failed to achieve its stated goals. Wagenknecht would choose a completely different approach to Russia and recommends the resumption of gas imports. There is "no other short-term solution to lowering energy prices", said Wagenknecht. "We have to see our advantages." She criticized the fact that liquefied gas from Russia continues to find its way to Germany and Europe via LNG imports.
Personally, she has "no trust in Vladimir Putin", Wagenknecht affirmed. However, she observes "that Russia is fulfilling its contractual obligations. They are still supplying a pipeline that runs through Ukraine." Russia has also offered to resupply the one line that remains despite the attack on the Nord Stream pipelines. Russia supplies Hungary, its most important ally within the EU and NATO, via Ukraine. Before the invasion of Ukraine, Gazprom had cut back supplies for months, meaning that the gas storage facilities operated by Russian companies in Germany were practically empty at the start of the war. The perpetrator of the Nord Stream attack has still not been identified.
Thousands of emails from those interested in the party project
Wagenknecht, who has left the Left Party and plans to found a party named after her in January, is not only calling for a different migration policy when it comes to dealing with the Ukrainians. She called for a noticeable reduction in benefits for rejected asylum seekers in Germany. "Those who are not entitled to asylum should only receive very minimal benefits," said the 54-year-old. In this sense, Germany should follow the example of Denmark. When asked whether she really wanted to cut back on the "poorest of the poor", Wagenknecht replied: "The poorest of the poor don't come to Germany. They can't pay people smugglers." She said it was about "sending a signal to the world: 'We are overwhelmed, we can no longer cope'."
According to her, her project Bündnis Sahra Wagenknecht (BSW) is making good progress. She is very satisfied with the number of people joining her future party. Since the announcement, "thousands of emails have arrived" from people who wanted to join, said Wagenknecht. "I think that's a lot for a launch two weeks ago." It is impressive how "the breadth of society is reflected" among the interested parties. Wagenknecht and nine other Left Party members of parliament left the party in October to launch the BSW, which so far only exists as an association.
The full interview with Sahra Wagenknecht will be shown on RTL's "Nachtjournal" at midnight on Friday night.
Sahra Wagenknecht, a former Left Party politician and the future leader of her namesake alliance, advocates for resuming gas imports from Russia due to the lack of short-term solutions to lower energy prices. She critiques the unilateral military action taken by Europe and the USA in Ukraine and suggests a different approach with Russia.
During an interview, Wagenknecht discussed concerns about Ukrainian war refugees in Germany allegedly misusing citizens' allowances, but emphasized the suffering experienced by refugees who have lost family and homes. She addressed the ongoing supplies of gas from Russia to Europe via the Nord Stream pipelines despite the attack and Russia's offer to resume one line.
In response to criticism of her proposal to reduce asylum seeker benefits in Germany, Wagenknecht argued that those who are not entitled to asylum should only receive minimal benefits, citing Denmark as an example. The BSW, her new party, has seen a significant response with thousands of emails from interested individuals since its announcement.
Source: www.ntv.de
