BERLIN, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel has publicly accused Chancellor Angela Merkel of dishonesty on Tuesday, highlighting growing tension within the country's ruling coalition government as national elections loom.
Speaking during an interview with Deutsche Press-Agentur, Gabriel from the Social Democratic Party (SPD) said that Merkel's recent promise, not to cut social spending as her party seeks to boost Germany's annual defense budget, lacked credibility.
"Where else should the money come from? The CDU (the Christian Democratic Union), CSU and Ms. Merkel consistently refuse to reveal how they intend to fund their proposal," he asked.
Gabriel's comments came as a response to a vow by Merkel "not to cut anything" to gradually achieve the annual two percent of GDP goal for defense spending set by NATO.
The sharpness in his tone was unusual for Germany's top diplomat who remains one of the most senior ministers in Merkel's cabinet until a new federal parliament (Bundestag) is elected in September.
The SPD-politician went further in his criticism, accusing the Chancellor of having repeatedly reneged on campaign promises in the past. "If I experience again and again that someone does the opposite after an election of what they promised beforehand, then all the current assurances, that the planned increase in defense spending will not be financed with cuts to the welfare budget, cannot be taken seriously," he told dpa.
Gabriel singled out Merkel's U-turns on the introduction of road tolls, the abolition of military conscription and the phasing out of nuclear power as examples.
In the last case, Merkel had "...promised ahead of elections that she would prolong the life of nuclear reactors, only to declare the end of nuclear power generation six months later in order to win a state election in Baden-Wuerttemberg," according to the Foreign Minister. The decision came amidst the news of the Fukushima nuclear catastrophe and after Merkel had already once proposed and then dropped a national exit from the controversial power source.
Gabriel proposed to devote greater funds to education instead of the military, raising the former's annual budget from 4.2 percent of GDP (2016) to six percent of GDP.
"The parliamentary election on September 24 is also a choice between education and arms," he said.
SPD leader and election candidate Martin Schulz joined in Gabriel's criticism of Merkel on Monday, claiming that the chancellor was obstructing the progress of social justice in Germany.
He complained that his party had been unable to implement a range of social policy initiatives while in government because of resistance from its CDU coalition partner. Speaking to supporters in Bremen, Schulz accused Merkel of having personally prevented a tightening of federal limits on rental prices and the right to return to full-time employment after working part-time amongst others.
"The fact of the matter is that there is grave injustice in our country," Schulz said. The SPD would work towards creating equality of opportunity for Germans, for example by eliminating fees for childcare and universities.
Germans will elect a new federal parliament on September 24. Recent polls suggest that Merkel will emerge victorious, securing her fourth term in office.
