Overview

• Tilman Kuban, the CDU’s EU policy spokesman, said reaching 80 percent climate neutrality by 2045 should be the goal, with the remaining 20 percent addressed later.
• He proposed retaining free emissions certificates for industry, setting an 80 percent vehicle fleet decarbonisation target instead of a combustion-engine ban, and considering exemptions for certain steel products.
• Kuban argued that rigid mandates risk deindustrialization and job losses, citing recent auto-industry cuts and Volkswagen’s plan to build a Crafter plant in Turkey that includes combustion models.
• He contended that EU climate ambitions face growing pressure and urged Berlin not to isolate itself from partners such as France, Poland and Italy.
• Germany’s Climate Protection Act and a 2021 Constitutional Court ruling still require climate neutrality by 2045, so Kuban’s proposal would need political agreement and legal changes before any shift occurs.