Britain left the European Union (EU) in 2020, 47 years after joining the bloc. London had joined the European Economic Community (EEC) in 1973, and the Community became the EU in 1992. This time, Germany’s Right-Wing party Alternative for Germany (AfD) has raised the demand to leave the EU. The AfD has said that Germany should follow Britain’s path, as Dexit becomes a necessity for the sake of the Western European country’s economic growth.

In spite of being an Opposition party, the AfD has gained importance in recent times. Although it is not the main Opposition party, the AfD has risen to second place in the list of parties in Opposition in the past few years. The anti-immigrant AfD is just behind the main Opposition conservatives in opinion polls in recent months, as Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s three-party alliance has seen its support plunge. Keeping in mind the growing popularity of the AfD, the Government of Chancellor Scholz has issued an official statement on Dexit.

German Finance Minister Christian Wolfgang Lindner has rejected the AfD’s demand, saying that the EU single market is utmost important for Germany. If Germany leaves the European bloc, then the country’s economy will be shattered, added the minister. According to Lindner, Germany has the largest economic structure in Europe. Hence, Dexit would be an extremely wrong step for the export-reliant nation. He stressed: “It would ruin our economy. This is why we have to tell people, OK, you may not be in line with Government policies, but this is no reason for changing the complete system and for changing what our wealth is based on.”

AfD leader Alice Elisabeth Weidel went a step further by calling Brexit a model for Germany. She even proposed a referendum on Dexit, stating that the German people should decide whether they would stay in the EU or not. However, a section of Germany’s political circles has rejected Weidel’s proposal. German industrialists, too, have opposed the proposal, claiming that the AfD’s plan could wreak havoc on the national economy.

Interestingly, Lindner has admitted that Germany’s competitiveness is “not as good as it should be”. “We are preparing proposals over the next couple of months on how best to boost it, especially in the financial sector,” the Finance Minister told the press. At the same time, Lindner has stated that he is optimistic about Germany’s economic prosperity, mentioning that the country would rise economically “very soon”.

It may be noted that Germany is the only G7 country whose economy shrank in 2023. Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank, the two largest lenders of the country, have predicted another contraction for 2024, while the Government’s Council of Economic Advisers has pegged growth at just 0.4%.

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Published by Koushik Das

Koushik Das (born on May 16, 1976 in Kolkata) is a career journalist. Based in the Indian capital of New Delhi, Koushik writes mainly about foreign policies and current geopolitical issues, and rarely about other topics. His own political ideas are highly influenced by Antonio Gramsci, Louis Althusser, Michel Foucault, Michael Oakeshott and others. English philosopher and political theorist Oakeshott (Dec 11, 1901-Dec 19, 1990) says that “in political activity, men sail a boundless and bottomless sea. There is neither harbour for shelter nor floor for anchorage, neither starting-place, nor appointed destination. But we have to keep afloat”. (Rationalism in Politics, 1962) As a student of Political Science, Koushik loves to share his views on issues, which have great impacts on his thought process (and also on India, South Asia and of course on the global community), with his readers through his website – Boundless Ocean of Politics. By doing so, he tries to keep himself afloat. You will find some of his articles in https://inserbia.info/today/ (https://inserbia.info/today/author/kou_das13_i/), as he has been trying to assess the global geopolitics since 2003. You can also mail him at kousdas@gmail.com View all posts by Koushik Das