After the Berlin election: Red-Green-Red removes obstacles to explorations

After long discussions, the Left, the Greens and the SPD in Berlin agree on a common line against anti-Semitism. What this means for a possible government formation in the capital.

Berlin's Left Party leader Elif Eralp (l) has already met with her party's delegation from the Greens and SPD three times, and the next meeting is scheduled for today. Photo: Sebastian Christoph Gollnow/dpa

Berlin. Two and a half weeks after the election to the Berlin House of Representatives, the way should be clear for red-green-red exploratory talks to form a government. According to information from party circles from the German Press Agency, the Left, the Greens and the SPD agreed on a package of actions that should take effect in the event of anti-Semitic incidents. In doing so, they removed a key obstacle to the start of explorations. The “Tagesspiegel” first reported on the agreement.

In the election for the Berlin House of Representatives on September 20th, the Left was by far the strongest force with 25.7 percent. She is now relying on a red-green-red coalition. The Greens and the SPD have made an agreement on the recently hotly debated topic of anti-Semitism, as well as on dealing with racism and organized crime, a prerequisite for exploratory talks. The background is several incidents on the left that also caused concern among potential coalition partners.

Already three meetings together

Most recently, top politicians from the three parties met three times for so-called preliminary discussions lasting several hours. A fourth meeting is scheduled for the morning, after which the agreement will be presented at a press conference.

Before the exploration began, the Greens and the SPD insisted on binding agreements and mechanisms, especially on the subject of anti-Semitism. Last but not least, it should be clarified how the Left will deal with future possible anti-Semitic incidents within its ranks and what consequences this would have within a possible coalition.

Parts of the Berlin Left are repeatedly criticized for their positions on Israel and Palestine and anti-Semitism. Among other things, an election party for the Neukölln Left on September 20th caused a stir, at which the head of an Arab-born and partly criminal clan as well as a controversial pro-Palestinian activist were present. He is said to be close to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), which is classified as a terrorist organization by the EU.