Berlin election: Left, Greens and SPD announce exploratory talks

The Left, the Greens and the SPD in Berlin are starting exploratory talks on a possible government formation. The three parties announced this two and a half weeks after the election to the Berlin House of Representatives.

The prerequisite for this step was a common understanding on the recently hotly debated topic of anti-Semitism. “We protect Jewish life, strengthen coexistence and advocate for peace and understanding,” says an agreement between the three parties. Israel's right to exist is "non-negotiable."

“We are strengthening the police and the Office for the Protection of the Constitution in their mission to protect Jewish life in Berlin,” it continues. Party and faction members who violate the agreed principles must therefore expect to be excluded.

No contact with organized crime

The Left, the Greens and the SPD also agreed to strictly avoid contact with organized crime and to punish violations. Members of the Senate, elected representatives of the parliamentary groups and “our parties maintain a clear distance from people and groups of people who are attributed to organized crime,” according to another agreement.

Based on the agreement, exploratory talks will begin directly. The Left, the Greens and the SPD had already named their exploratory teams some time ago. Explorations into forming a government are not yet coalition negotiations. Those involved determine which points are particularly important to them and whether coalition negotiations would even be promising.