Climate protests criticized; but Germany missing 2030 goal

BERLIN (AP) — German officials urged environmental activists to engage in “constructive” protests and avoid endangering lives Friday as government-appointed experts warned that the key European Union country risks missing its climate targets for 2030.

A heated debate has broken out over activists' methods after road blockades caused by a Monday protest delayed a specialist rescue crew from reaching a cyclist fatally injured in a traffic accident in Berlin. Some German media declared the protesters “shared the blame” for the woman's death.

Climate activists also were criticized for gluing themselves to a dinosaur exhibit, throwing food over valuable paintings and spraying political party offices with paint.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz “supports all democratic engagement, and we have repeatedly stressed that in connection with the climate protests,” Wolfgang Buechner, the chancellor's spokesperson, told reporters. “But the form of protest that we are seeing now, this week in particular, is not effective or constructive.”