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00:00Here in Chemnitz, in the state of Saxony, the old GDR is everywhere. Back then it was called Karl-Marx-Stadt.
00:07When Zara Wackenknecht, the figurehead of the new radical left, is out campaigning,
00:12she likes to talk about the old days.
00:16That's something we learned in the GDR. We're not easily taken in by our leaders.
00:22The manifesto? More social justice, no more immigration,
00:27and above all, no more arms shipments to Ukraine.
00:33Her efforts to get a peace deal are really important to me.
00:39Keeping on sending arms to Ukraine and investing so much money in that? I'm against it.
00:46With a near shot, Ukrainian refugees have gathered to protest.
00:50For them, Zara Wackenknecht is playing Moscow's game.
00:54But the ex-communist denies she's a Putin stooge.
01:00Being slandered in this way because you campaign for peace talks is sick.
01:04We are not Putin's friends, but we do want an end to the war. And for us,
01:08we won't be able to achieve that as long as we keep sending arms to Ukraine.
01:14Winning words, opinion polls indicate that just months after its creation,
01:19her party will win about 15% of the vote in this state.
01:23Which worries former East German dissidents who fought for the end of the communist regime
01:28and support Ukraine. 35 years after the wall came down, Martin Böttger is sounding the alarm.
01:36The alliance ignores the fact that the Kremlin is run by an autocrat who behaves like a fascist.
01:41Unfortunately, I'm very worried that it's Putin who's going to win these elections
01:45in Saxony and also Thuringia. His propaganda works well in these regions.
01:50Zara Wagenknecht's success is in any case a game changer in this state.
01:57Without her, there'll be little chance of a majority to block the far right.