Germany's opposition Greens take more pacifist line

Sep 15, 2007, 17:52 GMT

Goettingen, Germany - Rank and file members of Germany's opposition Greens party instructed their parliamentary deputies Saturday to back away from supporting German military action against the Taliban.

Germany's military operations in Afghanistan have divided the party, which has pacifist roots but swung behind robust military policies during its 1998-2005 term in coalition with chancellor Gerhard Schroeder.

Saturday's resolution, passed by a special party congress in the central city of Goettingen, said Greens federal deputies must vote against continued use of the army in Afghanistan if fighting was involved.

Top party leaders tried to talk the conference out of this more pacifist line, but failed. The resolution is not strictly binding on the parliamentarians however.

Chancellor Angela Merkel's government is also not dependent on the opposition party's votes to gain a renewal of permission next month for the Afghan missions.

The Bundestag parliament is expected to approve continued peacekeeping in the north and the German air force flying reconnaissance missions to detect Taliban guerrillas in the south.

The resolution said the latter must stop so that Germany could 'get out of the spiral of violence.'