ISTANBUL

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Thursday said that while critical infrastructure cannot always be fully protected, robust backup systems are essential, as thousands of Berliners got electricity again after a five-day outage.

Merz made the remarks at a press conference held after a convention of the Christian Social Union (CSU), the junior partner in the coalition government, in Munich.

He said the blackout had exposed serious shortcomings. “We cannot protect our infrastructure perfectly, but we need backup systems. In Berlin, these backups were not in place to the necessary extent,” he said.

The chancellor argued that a comprehensive assessment would be carried out to ensure a more effective response should a similar situation occur again.

The federal prosecutors' office took over the probe after a left-wing group took responsibility for sabotage.

Calling Germany’s economic outlook “worrying,” Merz said the situation affects not only industry but also medium-sized enterprises and craftspeople.

He said German companies are under significant pressure, stressing comprehensive reforms to regain competitiveness. “We must improve our price competitiveness. We need to break down existing structures and restore our competitive strength," he said.

Merz added that the need for reform is particularly concentrated in four main areas: high energy costs, bureaucratic expenses, labor costs, and taxes.