Given the dire state of the local leftist movement, the anti-German discourse that emerged in the 1990s seemed to combine two self-criticism of often nationalistic and populistic leftists and a sharpening of criticism of the existing system. However, neither of these happened, and instead, the anti-German left represents a shift towards affirmation within the left as a whole. A radical critique of the current system cannot avoid recognizing the anti-German phenomenon as part of the mainstream, disguised as a sect.