German foreign minister prepares for make-or-break speech

Thu, 06 Jan 2011

Stuttgart - Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle prepared Thursday to defend his leadership of the Free Democrats (FDP), the junior partner in Germany's center-right government, at a key party conference following calls for his resignation.

The FDP's executive committee met in Stuttgart ahead of the party's traditional "three kings" summit, held each year on January 6.

"The FDP is united, and is fighting," said Economics Minister Rainer Bruederle, who is Westerwelle's deputy within the FDP.

Health Minister Philipp Roesler, one of the FDP's rising stars, expected the party conference to deliver a "new start."

The pro-business party entered government with Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats (CDU) in 2009, but has since sunk so low in opinion polls that it could fail to enter parliament if federal elections were held now.

Westerwelle's speech has been keenly anticipated, after FDP members have called upon him to take personal responsibility for the party's plummeting popularity, ahead of elections in seven of Germany's 16 federal states this year.

Development Minister Dirk Niebel spoke of a "spirit of change," as party members gathered for the Stuttgart conference.

Birgit Homburger, the FDP's parliamentary leader and a close aide of Westerwelle, said she expected him to give a "combative speech."

"He will set the departure point for a great election campaign, which we will win," Homburger said. Her fate has been closely linked to that of Westerwelle, who ranks as one of Germany's least popular politicians.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/news/360948,minister-prepares-make-or-break-speech.html.