For the first time since 1966, the conservatives of the CDU will take over the Foreign Ministry. Two names are mentioned by the German media as candidates for chief diplomat: Armin Laschet and Johann Wadephul. What are their positions on Kosovo and Albania?
In the new German government, the post of Foreign Minister will belong to the conservative CDU party of future Chancellor Friedrich Merz. The CDU last led this ministry in the distant year 1966. Between 1961-1966, the Foreign Minister was the CDU politician Gerhard Schröder (another Gerhard Schröder, from the Social Democratic Party, became Chancellor in 1998).
In 1966, after the resignation of the conservative Schröder, the post of foreign minister was taken by Willy Brandt, a social democratic politician, moral authority, later chancellor and one of the most important leaders of Germany after World War II.
The agenda of the new German government was approved on Wednesday, and the portfolios have also been divided. The coalition agreement results in the CDU, in addition to the position of chancellor, leading seven ministries: the Federal Chancellery (at ministerial level), as well as the ministries of Economics, Foreign Affairs, Education, Health, Transport and Digitalisation. According to the coalition agreement, the Social Democrats (SPD) will also lead seven ministries. In addition to the ministries of Defence, Finance and Justice, the SPD will also take over the ministries of Labour, Environment, Development and Construction.
Who will be Germany's new foreign minister? Two names are currently being mentioned by German media: Armin Laschet and Johann Wadephul, both veteran CDU politicians.
First, some information about Armin Laschet. He is known for his positive stances towards Kosovo. A few years ago, when the German political provocateur Thilo Sarrazin wrote that the Turks were invading Germany with a high birth rate like the Kosovars in Kosovo, Laschet reacted immediately. In an interview with the magazine “Stern” Laschet said: “The history of Kosovo is a little more complicated. This (what Sarrazin says) is the mindset of the dictator Milosevic, who justified his aggressive Serbian policy in this way. The Kosovo conflict did not erupt because of the birth rate, but stems from Milosevic’s speech in Fushë-Kosovo in 1989. With that speech, he covered the Balkans with war and expulsions”. Laschet has also defended NATO’s intervention in Kosovo. In an interview with German public radio he said: “In the Kosovo conflict, the UN Security Council was not capable of making a decision and yet action was taken”. Laschet decorated citizen Harald Meurer for founding an organization that raised money for victims of the war in Kosovo in 1999. Laschet recently accompanied German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock on a visit to Syria.
After a meeting with Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama last year, Laschet wrote on his Facebook profile: “Albania is a country of religious and cultural tolerance. It is impressive how Edi Rama, as prime minister of a Muslim-majority country, raised his voice against anti-Semitism in his speech to Rabbi Pinchas Goldschmidt on the occasion of the Charlemagne Prize award in Aachen. During World War II, Muslim Albanians protected and hid Jews from the Nazis. None of the Jews who sought refuge in Albania were deported. Courage is possible.”
Lascher has called Italy's agreement with Albania to open refugee camps on Albanian territory a model for Germany as well.
Johann Wadephul is another politician aspiring to the post of German Foreign Minister. Wadephul had called discussions about the exchange of territories between Kosovo and Serbia "unnecessary" and "nonsense."
In April 2019, he declared: "Now, finally, talks must resume on concrete issues such as: the association of Serbian municipalities, energy supply in Kosovo, the protection of cultural heritage, the recognition of diplomas, the rights of the displaced, but also on Kosovo's membership in international organizations - including the United Nations General Assembly."
In a speech to the German parliament in June 2019, Wadephul underlined: “When we talk about Greater Albania, we are talking about a real threat to peace in that region – a threat that, in particular, the President of Kosovo, Thaçi, is also promoting. This is unacceptable. If there is an idea to rewrite borders according to the ethnicity of the population, then we are dealing with a fundamental threat to peace and security in this region.” It is indicative that in this speech, Wadephul does not mention Serbia anywhere.
Wadephul is among those CDU MPs who have often shown sympathy for Serbian autocrat Aleksandar Vučić. In June 2022, when Chancellor Olaf Scholz visited the region, Wadephul criticized his itinerary and statements. According to “Deutsche Welle”, during a speech in the Bundestag on the occasion of a debate on the Western Balkans, Wadephul called Chancellor Scholz’s trip a failure, which according to him was evident from the stops: “Once in Pristina and then in Belgrade. From there it became clear that the trip was extremely problematic”. Why it is problematic to first visit Pristina and then Belgrade remains a puzzle that only Wadephul could solve. According to “Deutsche Welle”, he called the German Chancellor’s statement during his visit to Belgrade (on June 12, 2022) about the necessity of Serbia’s recognition of Kosovo as a precondition for its entry into the EU amateurish. "This is desirable and everyone knows this, but recognition should come at the end of a process, and now this statement made in public in such an amateurish manner burdens the entire process, which has become difficult for Serbia."
This week, Johann Wadephul met in Belgrade with Serbian President Vučić, who is under the greatest pressure from citizens since coming to power more than 10 years ago. As for Albania, Wadephul has often been skeptical about the start of EU membership negotiations, emphasizing the fulfillment of conditions, among which he mentions the fight against corruption, judicial reform and electoral reform.
The program of the new government, which is expected to be elected in early May, mentions the Balkans superficially, and no deadlines are given for how many years the integration of the six Balkan countries into the EU could be achieved. The program emphasizes: "The important EU membership of the six Western Balkan countries, Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova is in our mutual interest. We want to continue the supportive efforts of the EU and its member states in a sustainable manner. This includes the Berlin Process - because we must offer the Western Balkan countries, which have long been waiting for progress, a credible perspective." Another point in the program emphasizes that "regular migration to Germany within the framework of the so-called Western Balkans Regulation will be limited to 25,000 people per year." (A2 Televizion)
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