Finally A Little Realpolitik!

What for Germans have turned out to be nasty allegations, I welcome.

Germany rejects charge of blackmail to win UN seat

BERLIN - The German government on Wednesday rejected Italian charges that Germany, Japan, India and Brazil were using blackmail in a drive to win permanent seats on the United Nations Security Council. “These allegations are naturally untenable. They are groundless and must be rejected,” said Jens Ploetner, a German Foreign Ministry spokesman. In Rome, Italy’s Ansa news agency quoted Japan’s Ambassador to the U.N., Kenzo Oshima, as saying Italy’s “low level” accusations were not worth replying to.

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“I am referring to the G4 resorting to financial leverage and to financial pressures in order to induce a government to align, or not to align, itself with certain position,” he said

According to German language sources, Italy claims to have evidence that Germany, among others in the so-called G4, are threatening poor countries with reducing or cutting aid money in order to gain support for their seat on the UNSC. While these tactics may be less than honorable, it’s about time to see Germany (allegedly) playing hardball. After all, where does the word Realpolitik come from anyway?