"Your Empire and us in Europe"

A Europe under the rule of the Iron Lady Merkel and her people, authors of an “economic miracle”? The thesis repeated by British newspapers is exasperating the German press. To the editorialists across the Channel who defend excluding Germany from the eurozone on the pretext that Berlin “has destabilised the euro with its low wages, ruthless productivity and well-known Panzer mentality,” Spiegel-Online responds with a scathing “Your Empire and us.”

In Paris, Le Monde notes the “gulf” that separates German and British views on Europe’s future. On the one hand, the Chancellor is calling for further European integration; on the other, Prime Minister David Cameron believes that the crisis should be an opportunity for Britain to "reshape" its relationship to the EU. “That is to say: ‘repatriate powers' to London, rather than see them 'drift' to Brussels.”

In the current climate, the eternal British ambivalence undermines Europe by the day,” adds Le Monde. Summing up its thoughts on the subject, the paper concludes: On Europe, London has to choose – or keep quiet.

For more: Britische Euro-Kritiker: Euer Empire und wir - SPIEGEL ONLINE - Nachrichten - Politik