Germany reacts to Trump on energy and pets. September 11, 2024

Former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a presidential debate with US Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris (not pictured) at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on Tuesday. AFP

By AFP - Agence France Presse

Germany reacts to Trump on energy and pets.

Germany responded on Wednesday to claims made by US presidential candidate Donald Trump about the country's energy grid - and also mocked his unfounded assertion that immigrants are eating Americans' pets.

At the end of Trump's watched debate with his Democratic rival Kamala Harris on Tuesday, he attacked what he called her refusal to use fracking and fossil fuels.

“Germany tried to do that, and within a year they were back to building normal power plants,” Trump said.

The German Foreign Ministry responded on X: “Like it or not: Germany's energy system is fully operational, with more than 50% renewable energy.”

The ministry, in the post on its English account, reminded Trump that “we are closing - not building - coal and nuclear power plants” and that Germany intended for coal “to be off the grid by 2038 at the latest”.

The German government was criticized by climate activists for temporarily reopening coal-fired power plants in 2022 and increasing imports of liquefied natural gas after Russia reduced energy supplies following the invasion of Ukraine.

Since then, Berlin has managed to reduce its use of fossil fuels.

In the first half of this year, the share of renewables in electricity generation was 61%, while coal accounted for just 23%.

At a press conference on Wednesday, a government spokesperson said that “we learned about (Trump's comments) with some surprise”, adding: “I didn't know what the presidential candidate meant by that.”

The Foreign Ministry also took the opportunity to clarify Trump's baseless claim that immigrants are stealing and eating cats.

“PS: We don't eat cats and dogs either,” the Foreign Ministry said at the end of the X post.

During the debate, Trump referred to an unfounded allegation that Haitian immigrants in the small town of Springfield, Ohio, are stealing pets to eat.

Trump's running mate, J.D. Vance, and Republican lawmakers, officials, and influencers repeated the rumor as a way to smear immigrants.

Police authorities denied the allegations.

“There have been no credible reports or specific allegations of pets being harmed, injured, or abused by individuals from the immigrant community,” Springfield police said in a statement.

During his presidency, Trump has repeatedly attacked Berlin on topics such as military spending and Germany's strong exports.

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