German Lawmaker Predicts Berlin's Foreign Policy Change Under New President

Germany's former Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, elected as the country's next president, could apply his reconciliatory stance to his new office, Sahra Wagenknecht, a senior member of German Left Party and the chair of its parliamentary group, told Sputnik on Monday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Steinmeier was elected as the next German president on Sunday to replace Joachim Gauck. The former foreign minister gained the support of the vast majority of the Federal Convention and is due to assume the post on March 19.

"I hope that at least the foreign policy priorities will change compared to Gauck's tenure. Steinmeier is a diplomat to the core after all, and, as the foreign minister, he staked on reconciliation rather than confrontation. This, of course, is important for the role of a federal president as well. He will be stating his position not only on foreign policy but on domestic policy as well," Wagenknecht said.

The left-wing politician stressed that the incoming president should strive to improve cooperation and ease tensions where any exist.

The president should also put up more resistance to the government on both foreign and domestic issues, she added.

"I would like to have a federal president who would sometimes oppose the government… Who can tell the government that this cannot go on, something must change," Wagenknecht said, referring mostly to domestic social policy matters.

As Germany's foreign minister, Steinmeier presided over the entire period of the aggravation of the EU relations with Moscow in the wake of the 2014 Ukrainian crisis. The Social Democratic Party (SPD) member served in Chancellor Angela Merkel's cabinet throughout Germany's involvement in Ukrainian settlement in the Normandy Four format.