On Wednesday, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz canceled a scheduled phone call with US President Donald Trump, hours after the latter publicly praised the victory of the far-right Alternative for Germany party in local elections.
A Meretz spokesman refused to reveal the reason for canceling the call, but he explained in response to journalists’ questions that the matter was not related to a scheduling conflict, as quoted by Agence France-Presse.
In a post on his platform, Truth Social, Trump praised what he considered “a really big night” for the Alternative for Germany party. “They are finally fed up with the appalling immigration laws and rules that have done so much damage to Germany,” he wrote on Tuesday evening.
The Meretz spokesman did not comment directly on Trump's statements, but pointed out that the advisor repeatedly objected "in general terms" to "interfering in or commenting on the internal political situation, especially with regard to the elections." The spokesman added that a new date for a phone call between the two men has not yet been set.
At the conclusion of his post, Trump also wrote the letters “MGGA,” in apparent imitation of his campaign slogan “MAGA” and in support of the Alternative for Germany party, which means “Make Germany Great Again.”
Other figures close to Trump, including a former ambassador to Germany and billionaire Elon Musk, also welcomed the victory of the Alternative for Germany. Musk announced his support for the party years ago, including during his work in the Trump administration.
The Alternative for Germany party, which Meretz has repeatedly described as racist and a threat to democracy, achieved an unprecedented victory on Sunday in local elections in the state of Saxony-Anhalt in eastern Germany.
The German Chancellor strongly warned against the immigration policy advocated by the Alternative Party. During the general discussion session in Parliament, Mertz said, “The word redisplacement is nothing but a synonym for ethnic cleansing on the basis of origin and skin color,” as quoted by the German News Agency. The head of the German Christian Democratic Party added that millions of people of immigrant origins also work, for example, in the crafts and handicrafts sector, and he believed that if what the Alternative Party is promoting, i.e. re-displacement, is achieved, the consequences will be disastrous.
He said on Wednesday: “Then the crafts and handicrafts sector in Germany will not be able to work, not a single nursing home will be able to continue working, not a single hospital in Germany will be able to continue working, and not a single restaurant will be able to operate in Germany, and this will be the result of the relocation policy that you are calling for.”
It is noteworthy that the term “redisplacement” has its origins in migration studies and research. When right-wing extremists use it, they usually mean that a large number of people of foreign origin leave the country, even under duress. The Alternative Party, which has the second largest bloc in the German Parliament, also uses this term. However, the party's statements on this issue confirm that the matter is not related to German citizens, but only to "the return of foreigners who are obligated to leave the country, in accordance with the law."
“This is precisely what deeply divides our society,” Mertz said. While the German Chancellor acknowledged that there are problems in the field of immigration, and that the government also wants to increase deportations, he considered that the government carefully distinguishes between people who work and are welcome, and those who reside without permanent residency.
Moscow expressed its desire to resume talks with Kiev, mediated by Washington, soon, perhaps followed by a summit next November that includes Russian President Vladimir Putin, his American counterpart Donald Trump, and Chinese President Xi Jinping in China.
In response to a question about whether during their phone call on Tuesday, Trump and Putin discussed the idea of holding a tripartite meeting in the Chinese city of Shenzhen, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: “Without a doubt.” Peskov added to reporters: “This possibility has previously been raised, and there will be an opportunity to hold such a meeting.”
The November summit comes in light of American pressure on Russia to end the war in Ukraine, while relations between Moscow and Beijing are strengthening.
Dmitry Peskov said on Wednesday that Moscow hopes to resume peace talks between Ukraine and Russia, mediated by the United States, in the near future. His comments were issued following a phone call that took place on Tuesday between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his American counterpart, Donald Trump, to discuss prospects for ending the war. No such talks have taken place since February, but President Trump sent his negotiators to Moscow and then to Kiev over the weekend in an effort to revive the deadlocked process.
Peskov's comments came in response to a speech by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in which he indicated the possibility of developing a road map to resume talks and begin work towards reaching a result acceptable to both parties.
The Ukrainian President announced that he is counting on the resumption of talks between Moscow, Kiev and Washington during this month to find a solution to the war in Ukraine, coinciding with Russia's resumption of its intensive air strikes after a three-day hiatus.
Russia and Ukraine remain very far apart on how to end the four-and-a-half-year war, with Kiev rejecting Moscow's demands to cede territory.
Peskov said the Kremlin would not publicly discuss possible elements of a possible settlement, but there was a "definite political will" to resume talks.
He added: “We hope that these negotiations will resume in the near future, and we are in contact with our American counterparts.”
Peskov's comments, as reported by Reuters, came one day after Trump and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, communicated by phone.
Peskov also stated that the issue of prisoner exchange between Russia and the United States is a “key item on the agenda” between the two presidents. He also pointed out that Russia released an American prisoner named Robert Gilman at the request of Trump last month. The two countries have previously carried out prisoner exchanges on several occasions over the past few years.
The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum is scheduled to hold its summit in the Chinese city of Shenzhen on November 18-19. Russia indicated that Putin will participate in the summit, while the White House has not yet announced whether Trump will attend.
The establishment of the APEC Intergovernmental Forum dates back to the 1980s. It includes several countries, including Russia, China, and the United States, and is considered one of the most prominent economic cooperation frameworks in the Asia-Pacific region.
For his part, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky criticized the international community on Wednesday for not taking a tougher stance towards Russia against the backdrop of its escalation of bombing of civilian areas in Ukraine.
International economic sanctions on Russia and efforts to isolate Moscow diplomatically did not stop the invasion. Zelensky called on countries to intensify pressure.
The Ukrainian president said, in a post on social media: “Unfortunately, the international community’s reaction to these strikes was very limited, even though they claimed the lives of people on an almost daily basis.”
He added: "But a response must be made. Moscow must not enter the winter believing that it can escape the terrorism of missiles and drones without consequences."
Since the beginning of the summer, Russia has intensified its attacks on Kiev with drones powered by jet engines, which are faster, fly at a higher altitude, and are more capable of carrying explosives than traditional models, which has confused Ukrainian air defenses and repeatedly disrupted life in the capital, which is racing against time to develop new means of intercepting them.
Ukrainian forces struck targets in the Russian Black Sea port city of Novorossiysk and in the Krasnodar region, including a naval base and an oil loading terminal, the Ukrainian president said. Zelensky added that the strikes also targeted military port facilities and warships carrying missiles.
Robert Provdi, commander of the Ukrainian Unmanned Systems Corps, said on Wednesday that Ukraine bombed military ships overnight at a naval base in the Russian port of Novorossiysk on the Black Sea. Provdi added that missile carriers were among the ships that were “lost” at the base, but he did not mention the number of ships that were bombed. It is also difficult to verify the veracity of these field reports from independent sources.
The Russian Ministry of Defense announced, on Wednesday, the downing of 596 Ukrainian drones overnight that raided more than ten Russian regions and the Crimean Peninsula, which Moscow annexed, in an attack that killed four people, including a child, according to local authorities.
The governor of the Krasnodar Region (south), Veniamin Kondratiev, said in a statement via Telegram that the attacks announced by the Russian Ministry of Defense resulted in the death of four people and the injury of 29 others.
He added in a statement published on the Telegram application: “Our armed forces succeeded at night in repelling a large-scale attack using drones, and the city of Novorossiysk was the most affected.”
The Ukrainian border guard said in a Facebook post on Wednesday that Russian drones hit a border crossing between Ukraine and Moldova during the night. The publication added that the attack resulted in deaths and injuries and the outbreak of fires.
Emergency services reported in a separate post on Telegram that Russia attacked the Ukrainian capital, Kiev, during the night, causing fires to break out but causing no casualties.
