7 hours ago ...Merkel, After Discordant G-7 Meeting, Is Looking Past Trump ... BERLIN — German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Europe's most ... Receive occasional updates and special offers for The New York Times's products and services.
Merkel, After Discordant G-7 Meeting, Is Looking Past Trump
Photo
Chancellor Angela Merkel of
Germany in Munich on Sunday. “The times in which we could rely fully on
others, they are somewhat over,” she said.Credit
Christian Bruna/European Pressphoto Agency
BERLIN — Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany,
Europe’s most influential leader, has concluded, after three days of
trans-Atlantic meetings, that the United States of President Trump is
not the reliable partner her country and the Continent have
automatically depended on in the past.
Clearly disappointed with Mr. Trump’s positions on NATO, Russia, climate change
and trade, Ms. Merkel said in Munich on Sunday that traditional
alliances were no longer as steadfast as they once were and that Europe
should pay more attention to its own interests “and really take our fate
into our own hands.”
“The
times in which we could rely fully on others — they are somewhat over,”
Ms. Merkel added, speaking on the campaign trail after a contentious
NATO summit meeting in Brussels and a Group of 7 meeting in Italy. “This
is what I experienced in the last few days.”
Ms.
Merkel’s strong comments were a potentially seismic shift in
trans-Atlantic relations. With the United States less willing to
intervene overseas, Germany is becoming an increasingly dominant power
in a partnership with France.
The
new French president, Emmanuel Macron, has shown a willingness to work
with Germany and to help lead the bloc out of its troubles. And Ms.
Merkel sees Germany’s future more and more with the European Union of 27
nations, without Britain after its vote to leave the bloc.
“This
seems to be the end of an era, one in which the United States led and
Europe followed,” said Ivo H. Daalder, a former United States envoy to
NATO who is now the director of the Chicago Council on Global Affairs.
“Today, the United States is heading into a direction on key issues that
seems diametrically opposite of where Europe is heading. Merkel’s
comments are an acknowledgment of that new reality.”
Ms.
Merkel’s emphasis on the need of Europe to stand up for its own
interests comes after Mr. Trump declined to publicly endorse NATO’s
doctrine of collective defense or to agree to common European positions
on global trade, dealing with Russian aggression or mitigating the
effects of climate change.
“We have to know that we must fight for our future on our own, for our destiny as Europeans,” Ms. Merkel said.
Ms.
Merkel, who did not mention Mr. Trump by name, also spoke of Britain’s
decision to leave the European Union, which means the bloc will lose its
second-largest economy and one of its two nuclear powers. Britain’s
departure will also weaken trans-Atlantic ties and leave the Continent
more exposed than before.
Given
this new context for international relations, she said, “I can only say
that we Europeans must really take our fate into our own hands — of
course in friendship with the United States of America, in friendship
with Great Britain and as good neighbors wherever that is possible also
with other countries, even with Russia.”
With
her statement, she seemed to be calling for German voters to get
accustomed to a more active European role — and to more involvement by
Berlin in crises on the Continent as well as global ones affecting
Europe’s future. Ms. Merkel is seeking a fourth term as chancellor ahead
of parliamentary elections in September.
Ms.
Merkel was known to have been unsettled by her meetings with Mr. Trump
in Washington in March, and she had been concerned that if Marine Le Pen
won the French presidency this month, Germany would be isolated and the
European Union badly damaged.
But
Mr. Macron, who was meeting Mr. Trump for the first time, appeared to
have a less negative impression of the outcome of the talks than Ms.
Merkel. In a news conference at the end of the Group of 7 conference,
Mr. Macron took a glass-half-full approach, saying that he believed,
over all, that despite Mr. Trump’s earlier hostile language toward NATO,
multilateralism was intact and there was a shared vision in a number of
areas.
Mr. Trump campaigned on a platform of trade protectionism,
nationalism and skepticism about multilateralism and climate change —
all issues on which most European leaders disagree with him. Europeans
also depend on NATO for their ultimate defense and are more concerned
about an increasingly aggressive Russia than Mr. Trump seems to be,
although his defense secretary and national security adviser, both
senior military officers, insist that the president is fully behind
NATO’s Article 5, which requires all members to come to the defense of
any country in the alliance that is attacked.
Mr.
Daalder said: “This is ‘America first’ — a policy focused on narrow
self-interest — and abandons the idea that the best way to enhance our
security and prosperity is by having strong allies and leading globally
in pursuit of common values and interests.”
As
they traveled back to the United States over the weekend, White House
officials said Mr. Trump had succeeded in delivering a blunt message
about self-reliance to American allies in Europe.
They
said the president’s decision to scold the NATO member countries about
their contributions to the defense alliance would reduce the need for
the United States to carry the financial burden for the Continent’s
defense. And they said the president’s tough position on trade would
help protect American companies from unfair practices.
“This
was a summit in which the goals and priorities of the United States and
the president really were felt deeply,” said a senior administration
official who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the
president’s discussions with other leaders. Mr. Trump “has changed the
way many people around the world are thinking about these issues.”
White
House officials expressed little concern about the personal
interactions between the president and other heads of state. The
administration official said Mr. Trump had built “an extraordinary
rapport with the other leaders.”
Ms.
Merkel seemed particularly upset with Mr. Trump’s refusal to endorse
language supporting free trade and backing the Paris climate accord in
the Group of 7 declaration after talks in Taormina, Sicily. There have
been reports that Mr. Trump intends to abandon the 195-nation climate deal agreed upon in 2015, arguing that it hurts the American economy.
The
climate accord was the most vivid sign of division between the United
States and its allies. But Mr. Trump, in Brussels, also repeated
comments that Germany was “very bad” because of its trade surplus and
the fact that some German car companies manufacture in Mexico for
importing into the United States, even though many of them produce cars
in American factories with American workers.
On
Saturday, Ms. Merkel was unusually direct in discussing what she called
unsatisfying talks on climate change, which is an important issue for
many German voters and a hallmark topic for the chancellor, who first
made her mark in the 1990s shepherding an international accord on the
environment.
Ms.
Merkel’s disappointment on the issue was not entirely shared by Mr.
Macron, who said Mr. Trump had at least listened to the arguments of the
other G-7 leaders.
Ms.
Merkel, however, sounded a somewhat bleaker note. “The whole discussion
about climate was very difficult, not to say unsatisfactory,” she said.
“There’s a situation where it’s six, if you count the European Union,
seven, against one.”
“This
is not just any old agreement, but it is a central agreement for
shaping globalization,” she said. “There are no signs of whether the
U.S. will stay in the Paris accords or not.”
Mr. Macron, 39, told the French news media that his now-famous handshake tussle
with Mr. Trump was a deliberate effort to show that he could not be
pushed around by the American president. He told the Sunday newspaper
Journal du Dimanche that it was “a moment of truth” — designed to show
that he is no pushover, and a message for the European Union leadership,
as well.
“My
handshake with him — it wasn’t innocent,” Mr. Macron said. “One must
show that you won’t make small concessions, even symbolic ones, but also
not over-publicize things, either.”
The
budding Merkel-Macron relationship is important, and Ms. Merkel has
moved quickly to embrace him, conscious that he must still try to win a
legislative majority in elections next month to be an effective partner.
The European Union has traditionally been at its strongest when its two
biggest continental powers work closely in tandem.
Accordingly,
Ms. Merkel and her top aides held a bilateral meeting on Friday night
in Sicily with Mr. Macron and his top officials, German officials said.
Most strikingly, the spouses of the two leaders also attended. It is
rare for Ms. Merkel’s husband, Joachim Sauer, to accompany her on trips
abroad — something she said recently that he decides. Brigitte Macron is
new to the role of France’s first lady, but Mr. Macron has credited her
with giving him valuable political advice.
In
general, Mr. Macron — who will meet with President Vladimir V. Putin of
Russia on Monday at Versailles outside Paris — has stressed friendship
with Germany, appointing German speakers to critical positions,
including prime minister, chief foreign policy adviser and defense
minister. The newly elected president also kept the tradition of paying
his first official visit to Berlin, doing so on his first full day in
office.
As
for Mr. Trump, he says the trip was a resounding success. On Sunday,
after being restrained on Twitter while abroad, he returned to form,
unleashing a barrage of posts. Among them: “Just returned from Europe. Trip was a great success for America. Hard work but big results!”
Mr.
Daalder disagreed. “The president’s failure to endorse Article 5 in a
speech at NATO headquarters, his continued lambasting of Germany and
other allies on trade, his apparent decision to walk away from the Paris
climate agreement — all suggest that the United States is less
interested in leading globally than has been the case for the last 70
years,” he said.
As they traveled back to the United States over the weekend, White House officials said Mr. Trump had succeeded in delivering a blunt message about self-reliance to American allies in Europe.They said the president’s decision to scold the NATO member countries about their contributions to the defense alliance would reduce the need for the United States to carry the financial burden for the Continent’s defense. And they said the president’s tough position on trade would help protect American companies from unfair practices.“This was a summit in which the goals and priorities of the United States and the president really were felt deeply,” said a senior administration official who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the president’s discussions with other leaders. Mr. Trump “has changed the way many people around the world are thinking about these issues.”White House officials expressed little concern about the personal interactions between the president and other heads of state. The administration official said Mr. Trump had built “an extraordinary rapport with the other leaders.”Ms. Merkel seemed particularly upset with Mr. Trump’s refusal to endorse language supporting free trade and backing the Paris climate accord in the Group of 7 declaration after talks in Taormina, Sicily. There have been reports that Mr. Trump intends to abandon the 195-nation climate deal agreed upon in 2015, arguing that it hurts the American economy.The climate accord was the most vivid sign of division between the United States and its allies. But Mr. Trump, in Brussels, also repeated comments that Germany was “very bad” because of its trade surplus and the fact that some German car companies manufacture in Mexico for importing into the United States, even though many of them produce cars in American factories with American workers.On Saturday, Ms. Merkel was unusually direct in discussing what she called unsatisfying talks on climate change, which is an important issue for many German voters and a hallmark topic for the chancellor, who first made her mark in the 1990s shepherding an international accord on the environment.Ms. Merkel’s disappointment on the issue was not entirely shared by Mr. Macron, who said Mr. Trump had at least listened to the arguments of the other G-7 leaders.Ms. Merkel, however, sounded a somewhat bleaker note. “The whole discussion about climate was very difficult, not to say unsatisfactory,” she said. “There’s a situation where it’s six, if you count the European Union, seven, against one.”“This is not just any old agreement, but it is a central agreement for shaping globalization,” she said. “There are no signs of whether the U.S. will stay in the Paris accords or not.”Mr. Macron, 39, told the French news media that his now-famous handshake tussle with Mr. Trump was a deliberate effort to show that he could not be pushed around by the American president. He told the Sunday newspaper Journal du Dimanche that it was “a moment of truth” — designed to show that he is no pushover, and a message for the European Union leadership, as well.“My handshake with him — it wasn’t innocent,” Mr. Macron said. “One must show that you won’t make small concessions, even symbolic ones, but also not over-publicize things, either.”The budding Merkel-Macron relationship is important, and Ms. Merkel has moved quickly to embrace him, conscious that he must still try to win a legislative majority in elections next month to be an effective partner. The European Union has traditionally been at its strongest when its two biggest continental powers work closely in tandem.Accordingly, Ms. Merkel and her top aides held a bilateral meeting on Friday night in Sicily with Mr. Macron and his top officials, German officials said. Most strikingly, the spouses of the two leaders also attended. It is rare for Ms. Merkel’s husband, Joachim Sauer, to accompany her on trips abroad — something she said recently that he decides. Brigitte Macron is new to the role of France’s first lady, but Mr. Macron has credited her with giving him valuable political advice.In general, Mr. Macron — who will meet with President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia on Monday at Versailles outside Paris — has stressed friendship with Germany, appointing German speakers to critical positions, including prime minister, chief foreign policy adviser and defense minister. The newly elected president also kept the tradition of paying his first official visit to Berlin, doing so on his first full day in office.As for Mr. Trump, he says the trip was a resounding success. On Sunday, after being restrained on Twitter while abroad, he returned to form, unleashing a barrage of posts. Among them: “Just returned from Europe. Trip was a great success for America. Hard work but big results!”Mr. Daalder disagreed. “The president’s failure to endorse Article 5 in a speech at NATO headquarters, his continued lambasting of Germany and other allies on trade, his apparent decision to walk away from the Paris climate agreement — all suggest that the United States is less interested in leading globally than has been the case for the last 70 years,” he said.Continue reading the main story
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