The German and U.S. leaders are finding common ground in confronting President Vladimir Putin
over Russian interference in Ukraine, drawing them together after years
of trans-Atlantic discord over the euro-area crisis and U.S. NSA spying on
its allies.
As Merkel makes her first visit to the White House in almost three years today, she has shown herself to be the key conduit to Putin for the U.S. and its European allies. She’s done so while struggling to hold together a united European response to the Ukraine conflict in concert with the U.S. and by facing down sections of corporate and public Germany that is more willing to engage with Russia than punish it.
That common purpose with Obama means the mood for the visit is different from just eight weeks ago, according to a Merkel aide who asked not to be named because the preparations for the trip are private. Friction caused by the U.S. National Security Agency’s alleged eavesdropping on the chancellor’s phone is now taking a back seat, the aide said.
“Ukraine has significantly reduced the pressures on Merkel and Obama stemming from the NSA affair, which helps both of them,” Stefan Meister, a Berlin-based analyst at the European Council on Foreign Relations, said in a telephone interview. Even as Europe and the U.S. differ on the scope and speed of sanctions on Russia, the two leaders “will be looking for a signal of unity,” he said.
Note EU-Digest: As to the problems related to the NSA spying on Europeans, K. Cunningham probably defined it best : "Trust is something that is difficult to establish. It is very fragile that needs to be taken care of. Once trust breaks or shatters into pieces, it is very difficult to rebuild it."
It is an issue which certainly will not go away and one that has harmed US, EU relations.
Read more: Ukraine Trumps Spying as Merkel, Obama Find Common Ground - Bloomberg
As Merkel makes her first visit to the White House in almost three years today, she has shown herself to be the key conduit to Putin for the U.S. and its European allies. She’s done so while struggling to hold together a united European response to the Ukraine conflict in concert with the U.S. and by facing down sections of corporate and public Germany that is more willing to engage with Russia than punish it.
That common purpose with Obama means the mood for the visit is different from just eight weeks ago, according to a Merkel aide who asked not to be named because the preparations for the trip are private. Friction caused by the U.S. National Security Agency’s alleged eavesdropping on the chancellor’s phone is now taking a back seat, the aide said.
“Ukraine has significantly reduced the pressures on Merkel and Obama stemming from the NSA affair, which helps both of them,” Stefan Meister, a Berlin-based analyst at the European Council on Foreign Relations, said in a telephone interview. Even as Europe and the U.S. differ on the scope and speed of sanctions on Russia, the two leaders “will be looking for a signal of unity,” he said.
Note EU-Digest: As to the problems related to the NSA spying on Europeans, K. Cunningham probably defined it best : "Trust is something that is difficult to establish. It is very fragile that needs to be taken care of. Once trust breaks or shatters into pieces, it is very difficult to rebuild it."
It is an issue which certainly will not go away and one that has harmed US, EU relations.
Read more: Ukraine Trumps Spying as Merkel, Obama Find Common Ground - Bloomberg
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