Nice Work, Madam Chancellor
Chancellor Angela Merkel is performing exceedingly well on behalf of her country. She minces no words when it comes to disagreements with other heads of state, and clearly feels sufficiently confident in her abilities and her country's status to forcefully deliver her messages. President Vladimir Putin, no one's pushover at any time, has been treated to a well-deserved scolding with Ms. Merkel labelling his officious decision-making in throwing around his country's energy-weight as being mighty irritating to Europe.
As rotating chair of the European Commission, Ms. Merkel will no doubt have more than sufficient opportunities to throw her own weight around. She has earned the respect of her peers and the confidence of her countrymen by her steady steering forward of the German ship of state. No iron lady is she, but she has a firm grip on her country's needs and Germany's place within the European Union, and the world at large.
She has continued Germany's uneasy dance with the United States, assuring President G.W. Bush that Germany has no interest whatever in participating in the U.S.'s ongoing travails in Iraq; walks a fine line between assuring Palestinians that her country is troubled by their tortuously tenuous status, and her firm resolve to continue Germany's support of the State of Israel. She has brought forward a resolution to be adopted throughout the European Union that holocaust denial be designated a universally-recognized crime.
In so firmly chastising President Putin in her role as EU Chair, Chancellor Merkel amply demonstrates her ability to represent the European body in a diplomatic yet unmistakably direct manner to address a real worry; the nervousness of the EU over President Putin's mind games and little power plays with Russia's former satellites. He's enjoying his little cat-and-mouse games with Ukraine and Poland, watching them squirm unhappily as he threatens to leave them without the energy resources he controls.
They're annoyed and resentful, and have no interest whatever in embracing Russia and Mr. Putin in a show of solidarity to the memory of the U.S.S.R, a past glory of empire that Mr. Putin would dearly love to re-visit and bestow upon Mother Russia once again the territories that have been traditionally and by force, hers. As new members (Poland, Ukraine hopeful) of the EU, however, they now have their protector in Chancellor Merkel: "We have exchanged views on the fact that there have been irritations in the beginning of the year and that communication in the future has to be improved, in order to avoid these irritations," Ms. Merkel announced, post-talks with the Russian president.
Russia, of course, claimed that Belarus was at fault and Moscow was merely reacting in cutting off oil supplies to Europe because of a conflict over prices with her neighbour. A move characterized by Ms. Merkel as "destroying trust" between Russia and the EU. It can have a rather trust-destroying effect, to suddenly have energy cut off in the midst of the winter season, to be sure.
A mildly chastened Mr. Putin hastened to assure his interlocutor that the EU "should have no doubts about Russia's reliability, as Russia has a high interest in global energy security."
To which end Moscow is constructing a pipeline to Russia's Pacific coast for a gas route linking Russia directly with Germany, thus reducing "our dependence on transit states"; Belarus and Ukraine (and just incidentally, poor Poland). Russia is, of course, using its gas reserves as a political weapon to keep its neighbours in line and remind them just who is the power here.
There are other issues being brought to the fore where still-powerful Russia seems eager to cause additional headaches globally and to the EU in particular. To wit: Russia's recent ground-to-air missiles transferred to Iran, and at a critical time when the international community and the United Nations are attempting to halt Tehran's determined efforts to develop their very own nuclear armaments.
Chancellor Merkel is turning out to be an astute and determined political chess master. It will be interesting to watch her moves in counteraction against President Putin's stealth show of power politics.
As rotating chair of the European Commission, Ms. Merkel will no doubt have more than sufficient opportunities to throw her own weight around. She has earned the respect of her peers and the confidence of her countrymen by her steady steering forward of the German ship of state. No iron lady is she, but she has a firm grip on her country's needs and Germany's place within the European Union, and the world at large.
She has continued Germany's uneasy dance with the United States, assuring President G.W. Bush that Germany has no interest whatever in participating in the U.S.'s ongoing travails in Iraq; walks a fine line between assuring Palestinians that her country is troubled by their tortuously tenuous status, and her firm resolve to continue Germany's support of the State of Israel. She has brought forward a resolution to be adopted throughout the European Union that holocaust denial be designated a universally-recognized crime.
In so firmly chastising President Putin in her role as EU Chair, Chancellor Merkel amply demonstrates her ability to represent the European body in a diplomatic yet unmistakably direct manner to address a real worry; the nervousness of the EU over President Putin's mind games and little power plays with Russia's former satellites. He's enjoying his little cat-and-mouse games with Ukraine and Poland, watching them squirm unhappily as he threatens to leave them without the energy resources he controls.
They're annoyed and resentful, and have no interest whatever in embracing Russia and Mr. Putin in a show of solidarity to the memory of the U.S.S.R, a past glory of empire that Mr. Putin would dearly love to re-visit and bestow upon Mother Russia once again the territories that have been traditionally and by force, hers. As new members (Poland, Ukraine hopeful) of the EU, however, they now have their protector in Chancellor Merkel: "We have exchanged views on the fact that there have been irritations in the beginning of the year and that communication in the future has to be improved, in order to avoid these irritations," Ms. Merkel announced, post-talks with the Russian president.
Russia, of course, claimed that Belarus was at fault and Moscow was merely reacting in cutting off oil supplies to Europe because of a conflict over prices with her neighbour. A move characterized by Ms. Merkel as "destroying trust" between Russia and the EU. It can have a rather trust-destroying effect, to suddenly have energy cut off in the midst of the winter season, to be sure.
A mildly chastened Mr. Putin hastened to assure his interlocutor that the EU "should have no doubts about Russia's reliability, as Russia has a high interest in global energy security."
To which end Moscow is constructing a pipeline to Russia's Pacific coast for a gas route linking Russia directly with Germany, thus reducing "our dependence on transit states"; Belarus and Ukraine (and just incidentally, poor Poland). Russia is, of course, using its gas reserves as a political weapon to keep its neighbours in line and remind them just who is the power here.
There are other issues being brought to the fore where still-powerful Russia seems eager to cause additional headaches globally and to the EU in particular. To wit: Russia's recent ground-to-air missiles transferred to Iran, and at a critical time when the international community and the United Nations are attempting to halt Tehran's determined efforts to develop their very own nuclear armaments.
Chancellor Merkel is turning out to be an astute and determined political chess master. It will be interesting to watch her moves in counteraction against President Putin's stealth show of power politics.
Labels: Politics of Convenience
posted by Pieface | 4:59 PM
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