German parliamentarians criticize Merz’s speech about Belém

Base and opposition deputies who make up the Brazil-Germany parliamentary group in the European country’s Parliament criticize the chancellor’s “arrogance” and demand “responsibility”. German government says it respects COP in Brazil.

Deputies who make up the German-Brazilian Parliamentary Group in the Bundestag (German Parliament), criticized this Tuesday (11/18) the statements by the Federal Chancellor of Germany, Friedrich Merz, which were interpreted as an unfavorable comparison between Brazil and the European country.

Last week, in a speech to businesspeople, Merz praised the “beauty” of Germany and said that journalists who accompanied him in Belém at the Leaders’ Summit “were happy” to return to the European country “especially from the place where we were”.

The German-Brazilian group functions as a multi-party association that maintains contacts with the Brazilian Legislature and provides parliamentary support for the German government’s foreign policy.

In a note to DW, deputy Isabel Cademartori, from the Social Democratic Party (SPD), said that “a German chancellor must avoid giving the impression that he treats important partner countries in the Global South with Western arrogance.”

The SPD is the party of former German Federal Chancellor, Olaf Scholz, and currently makes up the government coalition of Merz, member and leader of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU).

For Cademartori, the statement damages Germany’s international reputation and is inappropriate, particularly on the occasion of the final stretch of the European Union’s free trade agreement with Mercosur. “Brazil is an important trading partner for Germany and a coveted destination for hundreds of thousands of German tourists and emigrants, in addition to being the country with the largest number of German speakers outside of Europe”, he argued.

Cademartori also mentioned that, in 2024, the 200 years of history of German immigration in Brazil will be celebrated.

“We depend on a close partnership with Brazil. We should not lightly undermine it with statements like these.”

Opposition demands “responsibility”

Deputy Anton Hofreiter, from the Greens, who is in opposition, interpreted the speech as “arrogant”. “The Federal Chancellor refuses to take international leadership in climate protection. At the same time, he expresses himself arrogantly about the host country of the World Climate Conference. Where responsibility is demanded, he relies on controversy,” the deputy told DW.

For him, the incident ends up conveying a bad image of Germany’s climate and foreign policy. “I have visited Brazil several times, both as a researcher and as a politician, and have experienced a country whose civil society is extremely engaged. As vice-president of the German-Brazilian parliamentary friendship group, I am aware of Brazil’s international importance. Germany and Brazil can benefit enormously from a close partnership, both in climate policy and on many other levels,” he concluded.

The speech was also criticized by Maren Kaminski, an opposition deputy from the A Esquerda party. “Merz’s statement is arrogant and presumptuous. He disparages an entire country and its inhabitants, which he probably doesn’t know well,” he told DW.

The parliamentarian also disapproved of Merz’s domestic policies. “As chancellor, he has completely failed in social policy. The increasing number of homeless people is just one of many examples. It is not up to him, precisely, to rise above others.”

Representative Rainer Rothfuß, who chairs the parliamentary group and is affiliated with the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, also in opposition, was another who criticized Merz in statements to DW.

“I can only express this in the words of the mayor of the capital of the state of Pará: Merz’s statements about Belém are ‘unfortunate, arrogant and prejudiced’. With his reckless statements, Friederich Merz reveals two things: first, he is not aware of the development path that Brazil, an emerging country, has taken in the last 30 years, something that prohibits any comparison with Germany; and, second, he does not have sufficient empathy or diplomatic skills,” said Rothfuß, who made a internship in Macapá in the 1990s, where he prepared a thesis on Policy for Sustainable Development.

“It never crossed my mind to compare the living conditions there [em Macapá] with those of my small university town of Tübingen in Swabia [sul da Alemanha]. It probably won’t take another 30 years for Germany, with a policy as hostile to the economy as the one Chancellor Merz has continued, to fall behind Brazil’s level of development”, continued Rothfuß.

“However, an unfortunate sentence from the chancellor will not be able to permanently harm relations between Germany and Brazil. Brazil is also familiar with politicians who, from time to time, utter some nonsense that is not very useful”, concluded Rothfuß.

Government says it respects COP in Brazil

After the controversy, the German government, in a statement, praised the “impressive nature” of Brazil and stated that the Federal Chancellor has “great respect for the achievement of organizing such an important international conference in Belém.”

“The federal chancellor regretted not having had time to travel to the banks of the Amazon and get to know better the impressive nature of the region. He had a small impression of the size of this landscape on the night of his visit, during a boat trip along the Guajará River, in the Amazon delta. In his press conference in Belém, he described Brazil as an important partner country for Germany”, says the text.

The government also cited German interest in making significant contributions to the Tropical Forests Forever Fund, something mentioned by Merz during his presence at the Leaders’ Summit. He also indicated the importance of Brazil’s relationship with Germany, given the presence of more than one million German speakers in Brazilian territory.

“During his brief trip to Belém, the federal chancellor explained the new federal government’s climate policy, promised a significant contribution to the Forest Fund and held a productive and forward-looking conversation with Brazilian president Lula da Silva,” he said.

When questioned, Itamaraty said it would not comment on the case. Among Pará politicians, the speech generated criticism. President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva sought to counter the speech with praise for Belém.

“The Prime Minister of Germany complained these days: ‘ah, I went to Belém, but I came back soon because I really like Berlin’. He, in fact, should have gone to a bar in Pará, he should have danced in Pará, he should have tried the cuisine of Pará, because he would realize that Berlin doesn’t offer him 10% of the quality that the state of Pará and the city of Belém offer. And I said all the time, eat maniçoba”, said Lula in this Tuesday.

This Tuesday, the Senate approved a vote of censure against Merz. Presented by senator Zequinha Marinho (Podemos-PA), the request received the support of other leaders of the House, such as Randolfe Rodrigues (PT-AP) and Davi Alcolumbre (União-AP). According to Zequinha, the German prime minister’s speeches carry “a xenophobic and prejudiced tone”, which “disrespects not only the city of Belém, but the entire Brazilian people and, above all, the Amazon”.

After approval, the document with the Senate’s rejection goes to Itamaraty, which must forward it to the German government.

Originally published by DW on 11/19/2025

By Gustavo Queiroz