Overview

• Tilman Kuban proposed scaling Germany’s 2045 goal to roughly 80% climate neutrality and postponing decisions on the remaining 20%.
• He argued the shift would protect industry and jobs, calling to retain free emissions certificates for factories and to drop a blanket combustion‑engine ban in favor of about 80% fleet decarbonization.
• Kuban framed the choice as adapting targets to current economic realities to avoid deindustrialization and political fallout.
• He said peers in France, Poland, Italy and eastern Europe expect growing pressure on the EU’s 2050 climate‑neutrality objective.
• The push drew swift resistance from CDU leadership, with deputy parliamentary leader Andreas Jung reaffirming the 2045 climate‑neutrality target and stressing stable rules for investment.