German Chancellor Angela Merkel defended the decision of the federal government and state authorities to extend the hard lockdown throughout Germany until March 7, DW reported.

These are significant restrictions, but they were adopted in accordance with the principles of democracy, she said, speaking in the Bundestag on Thursday. The authorities are obliged to lift restrictive measures when their reasons disappear and have no right to keep them in force for a day longer than necessary, she added.

Merkel recalled that the fight is against the virus, and therefore decisions should be guided by indicators of the number of infected and the spread of infection. The weakening of the lockdown should not lead to the emergence of a third wave of the pandemic, Merkel noted.