It was no surprise that the Secretary of State would get a beating for it.

A member of his cabinet publicly instructed the Federal Chancellor, not with impunity, to please speak plainly.

But that is exactly what Annalena Baerbock did when she told Olaf Scholz from Uzbekistan which topics he should address in Beijing.

Scholz didn't have to take care of the reproach personally, he has staff for that.

In his place, SPD parliamentary group leader Mützenich reminded that the chancellor did not need any tutoring for such a difficult mission.

The minister's statements were rude, undisciplined and unprecedented.

The house blessing in the traffic light coalition is crooked

Whoa, that sat.

But it is doubtful that such a public exchange of blows will straighten out the house blessing in the coalition, which has been in serious trouble after less than a year.

With this punitive action, the pacifist Mützenich outed himself as a supporter of deterrence: now everyone in the coalition knows what to expect if they disavow the chancellor.

And it's not just the Greens who have become rebellious, but especially those, motivated by their poll numbers.

However, Baerbock and Habeck also make mistakes.

Mützenich should have wished them "a good hand and much success" - and not the new Chinese "management level", i.e. Xi Jinping.