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'Super Stable' Germany Going Through Political Transition – German Journalist

© AP Photo / Michael KappelerGerman Chancellor Angela Merkel attends a plenary session of German parliament Bundestag in Berlin, Tuesday, Nov. 21, 2017
German Chancellor Angela Merkel attends a plenary session of German parliament Bundestag in Berlin, Tuesday, Nov. 21, 2017 - Sputnik International
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Following the collapse of coalition talks and the prospect of new elections, Germany's political situation might look insecure but in fact it is going through a transition by which a greater number of smaller parties will wield power, Dr. Hubertus Hoffmann, founder of the online political magazine globalo.com, told Radio Sputnik.

On Monday, Chancellor Angela Merkel informed the German President that negotiations between four parties – the classically liberal Free Democratic Party (FDP), the center-right Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union (CDU/CSU) bloc and the Greens – had failed. 

The breakdown leaves Germany facing snap elections. It occurred because the FDP left negotiations amid disagreements with the Greens in particular over policies on migration and the environment.

German journalist Dr. Hubertus Hoffmann, founder of the online political magazine globalo.com, told Radio Sputnik that the situation in Germany is more stable than it looks.

Sputnik: What are the chances for Merkel's Christian Democratic Union if there are snap elections?

Dr. Hubertus Hoffmann: There will be slight losses again for the Christian Democrats, Merkel will no longer be the "most powerful woman in the world." The liberals [FDP] will lose maybe one percent. The prediction now is that the Greens will gain some percentage points – they lost a lot before.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel attends a session of the Bundestag in Berlin, Germany, November 21, 2017 - Sputnik International
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The Left Party of the ex-GDR has a dream of forming a government with the Greens and the Social Democrats (SPD), to have a kind of left-socialist government. [However], they failed to reach enough votes, they won't get enough votes. The left part of the Social Democrats, the left part of the Greens, the Left Party dream of a kind of socialist revival of Germany. 

Sputnik: What about Alternative for Germany?

Dr. Hubertus Hoffmann: There are some good people, some crazy people, and they will get more votes [but it's more in opposition. There is no vision for the future in the 21st century. This protest party will lose votes because the liberal party has a crystal clear vision on the issue of inviting more refugees to Germany. 

Sputnik: Do you think these new situations will change the situation? 

Dr. Hubertus Hoffmann: From the outside it looks unstable [but] Germany is super stable. Why is this so? There is the rule of law, a free press and discussion.

We have another net of 16 strong states, and there we have government. Believe it or not the liberals have joined a government in Schleswig-Holstein with the Greens and the CDU. In Rhineland Palatinate, the liberals have joined a government with the SPD. Basically, there are different kinds of coalitions on the state level. Germany is super stable and why is that so? Because of the Mittelstand (middle class}, the economy and the hard-working people – it's prosperous. 

Some people even joke, like they do in Italy: "Who cares who forms the government? Italy will be Italy again."

Germany is getting to the normal [state]. Normal is that we have not one or two strong parties, one or two small. We have several parties, there are now four parties with around ten percent support.

This happens everywhere where there is democracy. There are some countries which look stable but they are rotton inside, and there are some countries which look unstable, but they are stable inside.

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