Angela Merkel: German Newspapers - "Heroine of Brussels" Can Do No Wrong
Germany's newspapers are so full of praise for Angela Merkel's mediating skills at the European Union summit in Brussels that she must be tempted to cut out the headlines and pin them up at home. How often does a politician get applauded by media commentators on the left and right, in Germany and across Europe, and by all other European governments as well?
Even the left-wing daily Die Tageszeitung can't help but laud her negotiating skills. "Angela Merkel, the Talented Tactician," reads the paper's headline. The editors laud Merkel's frugality and cite German politicians who praise her as the "new star in the European sky," who used female pragmatism to separate Europe's two most notorious squabblers, British Prime Minister Tony Blair and French President Jacques Chirac. She even managed to improve German-Polish ties by handing Poland 100 million euros in funds that had been largely earmarked for eastern Germany, writes the paper.
The closing document agreed on by European Union leaders gathered in Brussels reads like a German wish list. Chancellor Merkel was able to convince the EU to focus on financial-market regulation -- and to resist new stimulus programs. The EU will take an unusually hard line on regulating financial markets. Any participant who might represent a systemic threat -- "without exception and without regard for home nation" -- would have to be monitored, according to the EU's recommendation. This would apply to private capital firms as well as hedge funds, private equity companies and alternative investment vehicles. Tax evasion will be fought "forcefully." Offshore businesses will be placed on a blacklist and a "toolbox with sanctions" will be developed to pursue countries that serve as tax havens.
No comments:
Post a Comment