Thread by @JeremyCliffe

Revealing of current state of 🇩🇪's debate on pandemic measures: some 40 minutes into her big @DasErste interview, Angela Merkel still hasn't been asked about vaccinations. Focus overwhelmingly on lockdown policy and balance between federal & state responsibilities.

(Remarkably, Merkel just plainly acknowledged that Armin Laschet, her own CDU's new leader, is violating agreements on lockdown policy. She also intimated a need to revisit relationship between federal government and the states if latter continue to block tougher measures.)

Now (finally) onto vaccines. @annewill asks if she is "supporting or protecting" the Commission president. Merkel's reply: "I'm supporting her. Ursula von der Leyen doesn't need my protection."

Merkel stands by vaccine record. Says doses for 40m Germans due in Q2, EU has ordered doses for 2x its population, new BioNTech site opening... Brushes off comparison with UK but says German perfectionism needs more flexibility (eg giving out unused doses at end of day).

After all of 5 (?) minutes on vaccines, onto the big picture. Need to see glass as half full, not just half empty, says Merkel. Germany should credit itself with more "courage and strength". Implies criticisms (or some of them) amount to gloom-mongering.

Will CDU keep the chancellery after September's election? Voters will decide, says Merkel, adding that her party doesn't have an automatic right to it. Party "has the potential to give good answers" she says. Damning with faint praise much?

All in all the interview captured something of the perfectionism that Merkel herself cited. The debate here in 🇩🇪 currently revolves primarily around lockdown and testing policies, with vaccinations treated more as a long-term topic ticking away in the background.

Postscript: And who should pop up on the news afterwards but Markus Söder, Laschet's (more popular) potential rival for the CDU/CSU chancellor candidacy. Söder calls for stricter application of federal-state agreements, aligning himself with Merkel's frustration at Laschet et al.