Dresden – It is one of the largest folk festivals in eastern Germany – the Dresden Canaletto city festival. From August 16 to 18, there will not only be music, bratwurst and lots of beer, but also technology to marvel at. But the Left Party is mobilizing against it.
The police, fire brigade, THW and the German armed forces have been presenting themselves for years on the so-called Blue Light Mile at the Saxon State Parliament. They recruit young people, provide information about technology and visitors are allowed to sit in the vehicles.
The Dresden City Festival attracts tens of thousands of visitors every year
Lieutenant Colonel Robert Habermann (53) from the State Command Saxony to BILD: “This has been a tradition for many years and is met with great interest by visitors to the city festival in Dresden.”
But now the Dresden Left Party, led by its parliamentary group leader, is fighting against our German army. “The arms spiral is spinning ever faster. There is a loud drumbeat for the creation of war capability,” rages Left Party politician Andrè Schollbach (45). “Heavy military weapons have no place at a city festival. An army is not a happy adventure camp!”
Lieutenant Colonel Robert Habermann (53) explains the Bundeswehr’s technology to visitors. A new Tatra fire engine from the military can also be seen, which is intended to help with forest fires
Visitors can learn about the Bundeswehr
What the Left does not say: the Patriot (Phased Array Tracking Radar to Intercept on Target) anti-aircraft missile system can be seen without missiles. According to the Bundeswehr, it is a purely defensive system. In an emergency, it protects people and infrastructure against threats from the air.
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Leftists launch anti-Bundeswehr petition
This is evidently an election campaign maneuver before the upcoming state elections in September. The party has also started an online petition to the city of Dresden. But the left-wing maneuver has come to nothing for now – a decision on the petition will not be made before the city festival.
City spokesman Alexander Buchmann (37) told BILD: “As soon as the petition of the state capital Dresden is available, it will be submitted to either the mayor or the city council or petitions committee for a decision after a legal review of the jurisdiction.” And that can take time.
Left-wing politician André Schollbach (45) criticizes the appearance of the Bundeswehr at the city festival
Dresden CDU parliamentary group vice-chair Mirko Göhler (38) says of the left-wing attack: “It is shameful that precisely that political spectrum is demanding the participation of German Armed Forces at the Blue Light Mile, in which at the same time parts sympathize with the military aggressors in Eastern Europe or Asia.”
