Protesting farmers in Germany began to block autobahns
German farmers again protested against the abolition of benefits, blocking junctions on several federal highways in different parts of the country, TASS reports
According to the DPA agency, farmers have been blocking the A4, A13, A14 and A17 autobahns in the federal states of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and Saxony since early morning. Focus online reports that three trucks blocked the A2 highway in North Rhine-Westphalia (western Germany). In Berlin, the Street of 17 June (Straße des 17. Juni) is inaccessible to vehicles; a demonstration will take place there today, with farmers intending to drive 300 tractors to the Brandenburg Gate.
The protests will last until January 15th, when a major action will take place in Berlin.
The German government was previously forced to seek budget savings for 2024 after the verdict of the Federal Constitutional Court, which did not allow spending 60bn Euros from the budget. Some savings affected farmers, with authorities intending to gradually phase out agricultural subsidies. According to the German Finance Ministry estimates, this measure would save the budget 480m Euros annually. After this, large-scale protests broke out across the country.
