Angela in America
MATUS, VICTORINO
Angela in America Germany's new chancellor gets a warm White House welcome. BY VICTORINO MATUS THE PLAN WAS THIS: When the visiting German delegation arrived at the White House on January 13,...
...His release came three days before a German hostage in Iraq was freed, causing speculation of a quid pro quo, which Berlin strongly denies...
...Says the senior German diplomat, "Her message was that we have got to work together to have a united West and be smart enough to know there are larger issues at stake than the Boeing/Airbus dispute...
...It was more profound and serious...
...Partnership and friendship must therefore be revived and consolidated again and again...
...In late November, Germany's new foreign minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier made his first official visit to Washington amid allegations that the United States operates secret prisons for terror suspects in Europe...
...It was a reasonable assessment: Merkel is presiding over an extremely fragile coalition of Christian and Social Democrats, normally at odds with each other...
...attempts to extradite him...
...They also spent a significant amount of time on Iran...
...And just before her arrival, the chancellor expressed hope that Guan-tanamo would eventually be shut down...
...Political rivals initially lent her their support, believing she was a transition leader without a political future after two years...
...The issue was raised at the White House and Bush said he understood "why she brought it up, because there's some mispercep-tions about Guantan-amo...
...Then you'll have a real nice mess...
...The visit by the chancellor lasted slightly less than 24 hours (she overnighted at Blair House), though she managed to accomplish a considerable amount...
...Several issues emerged prior to Merkel's visit, however, that did not bode well...
...Earlier this month, the SUddeutsche Zeitung reported that in April 2003, two German intelligence agents were on the ground in Iraq, despite Schroder's antiwar stance, supposedly providing coalition forces the coordinates of Saddam Hussein's hideouts...
...The information apparently led to U.S...
...As another German diplomat candidly pointed out, "Her openness about being close to America doesn't win her any votes at home...
...Diplomacy in Tehran seems to be to create as much confusion in as many heads as possible and benefit from it...
...In late December, Mohammed Ali Hammadi was freed from a German prison after a parole hearing and returned to Lebanon despite U.S...
...Merkel later said that Rice called the incident "a mistake...
...Rice denied ever having said that...
...At a reception following a conference of the American Council on Germany and the German Council on Foreign Relations, Merkel stressed her belief that "the achievement of freedom, of security, of democracy, is, in fact, something that is well worth our while to defend...
...Instead, when the two leaders emerged from their one-on-one, Merkel decided she was comfortable enough to continue in English...
...She also wanted to improve communication between herself and the White House...
...And like the president, Merkel seems to have been underestimated...
...Hammadi served 19 years for, among other things, brutally murdering Robert Dean Stethem, a Navy diver, during the 1985 hijacking of TWA flight 847...
...The president held his ground, calling the prison "a necessary part of protecting the American people...
...Asked of his impression of the new chancellor, Bush replied, "She's smart, she's plenty capable...
...Afterward, the remaining parties (including Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley) would join them, with Merkel reverting to German, using a translator...
...To this day the invasion of Iraq and President Bush remain extremely unpopular in Germany...
...The last such "grand" coalition lasted no more than three years...
...Merkel's rivals may have to reassess their predictions of exactly how long she will stick around...
...They're good at playing everyone against everybody else...
...There hasn't been this level of comfort between a presiVictorino Matus is an assistant managing editor at The Weekly Standard...
...Unemployment remains stubbornly at 11 percent...
...Germany now relies on Russia for 30 percent of its oil...
...For the next three hours, the two sides discussed Guantanamo, Iran, China, Afghanistan, Iraq, and the war on terror...
...We both didn't exactly landslide our way into office...
...They all have their money abroad," he explained...
...It was during the run-up to the Iraq war in 2002 that Merkel's predecessor, Gerhard Schroder, refused to "click my heels" and join the coalition of the willing...
...Merkel later told the press it was "a very open, a very candid discussion," but one that "will open up, also, a new chapter, as I hope, in our relationship...
...Her English is just okay," said one European diplomat...
...bombings and civilian casualties, but no Saddam...
...She loves freedom...
...Merkel related her experience growing up in East Germany and the varying effects of sanctions targeting the regime...
...But as Schroder handed power over to Merkel last November, a thaw looked possible...
...I've been to many summit meetings through the years," said a senior German diplomat, "but this one was definitely one of the more interesting...
...But as Jackson Janes points out, "It hasn't taken much time for her to make a positive impression and show she knows what she's talking about...
...We've got something in common," joked the president...
...BY VICTORINO MATUS THE PLAN WAS THIS: When the visiting German delegation arrived at the White House on January 13, Chancellor Angela Merkel and President Bush would spend the first 30 minutes alone, sans interpreter, in the Oval Office...
...Bush, meanwhile, told the group that "from now on, I'm George and she's Angela...
...One high-ranking German official suggested freezing the assets of Iranian mullahs...
...This would get them upset at President Ahmadinejad...
...Another European senior official was wary of dealing at all with Iran, saying "the diplomats from Tehran are really good—^believe me, I know these guys...
...Speaking before the German Marshall Fund, Merkel again emphasized that "the German-American partnership feeds on our shared conviction that our commitment to liberty, democracy, and human rights is the correct response to the challenges of the 21st century...
...dent and his German counterpart in almost five years...
...Rice's first meeting with Merkel in early December was clouded by the case of Khaled Masri, a German citizen who is suing the CIA, claiming he was wrongfully beaten and imprisoned by an American rendition team...
...There is currently an investigation within the Bundestag regarding Germany's involvement...
...Janes, the executive director of the American Institute for Contemporary German Studies, likens Merkel's evolving role as an effective broker to that played by Helmut Kohl, another underestimated politician, who managed to stay at the top for 16 years...
...She's got a kind of spirit to her that is appealing...
...Likewise, "Bush was clearly interested in creating a more relaxed atmosphere between the two...
...Merkel's mention of "friendship" with the United States is no small matter...
...And who can blame him for sounding upbeat...
...Nevertheless, differences were set aside and the two leaders focused on areas where they agree, including continuing peacekeeping efforts in Afghanistan and the Balkans and the need for a strong NATO and a democratic and stable Iraq...
...A source close to the talks says Bush and Merkel discussed the need for "smart sanctions...
Vol. 11 • January 2006 • No. 19
