German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Wednesday defended his decision to fire finance minister Christian Lindner, which prompted the collapse of his three-party coalition. “The decision was correct and unavoidable,” said Scholz as he gave a major government statement in parliament. Scholz dismissed Lindner on November 6 following months of wrangling over the proposed budget for 2025. Lindner’s Free Democrats subsequently withdrew from the coalition, leaving the chancellor without a majority in the Bundestag, or lower house. Scholz’s Social Democrats and the Greens – his only remaining coalition par…