Merkozy magic is under strain
Source: Agencies |
October 25, 2011, Tuesday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
THEY were so close at one point that people started calling them "Merkozy" - but you can always count on money to break up a beautiful relationship.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy still talk on the phone every day and meet for dinner. But nowadays, as yet another summit of European leaders approaches tomorrow, they mostly discuss the finances that divide them - some hundreds of billions of euros.
Since its inception over half a century ago, the European Union has counted on the strong bond between former enemies Germany and France to take the lead and create an ever stronger bond.
With the financial crisis, that relationship is under more pressure.
The "Merkozy" relationship has been heading downhill for a while. As the euro crisis has dragged on from one summit to the next, through ups and downs of market volatility, the neighboring leaders have loosened their embrace.
Merkel and Sarkozy stood side by side at Sunday's EU summit to face the international media, presenting a united front as they struggled to find a common solution to the financial turmoil that has become the EU's most divisive issue.
"Faced with this unprecedented financial crisis, it is of capital importance that France and Germany speak in one voice," Sarkozy said.
Their common message, though, was that they failed to make any tangible progress and pushed all decisions off until another hastily called summit tomorrow.
This is risky, because since the summer, markets have been pouncing on every delay in decision-making or show of hesitancy in the euro crisis, so the pressure has increased for Sarkozy and Merkel to come through with strong proposals that the rest of the EU will almost inevitably have to follow.
"The determination of the Chancellor and myself is absolutely total," Sarkozy said.
But there is no denying the two nations have different agendas.
Merkel takes the frugal, hard-nosed line, trying to protect taxpayers as much as possible from having to bail out profligate nations like Greece. She also cherishes the independence of the European Central Bank and wants to keep it out of the EU rescue fund. As the biggest EU funder, Germany has the most clout.
France has the EU's second-biggest economy, but Sarkozy has to worry about French banks that are heavily involved in several EU nations teetering on the edge of bankruptcy. He is trying to protect those financial institutions from losing too much money and affecting his chances of re-election.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy still talk on the phone every day and meet for dinner. But nowadays, as yet another summit of European leaders approaches tomorrow, they mostly discuss the finances that divide them - some hundreds of billions of euros.
Since its inception over half a century ago, the European Union has counted on the strong bond between former enemies Germany and France to take the lead and create an ever stronger bond.
With the financial crisis, that relationship is under more pressure.
The "Merkozy" relationship has been heading downhill for a while. As the euro crisis has dragged on from one summit to the next, through ups and downs of market volatility, the neighboring leaders have loosened their embrace.
Merkel and Sarkozy stood side by side at Sunday's EU summit to face the international media, presenting a united front as they struggled to find a common solution to the financial turmoil that has become the EU's most divisive issue.
"Faced with this unprecedented financial crisis, it is of capital importance that France and Germany speak in one voice," Sarkozy said.
Their common message, though, was that they failed to make any tangible progress and pushed all decisions off until another hastily called summit tomorrow.
This is risky, because since the summer, markets have been pouncing on every delay in decision-making or show of hesitancy in the euro crisis, so the pressure has increased for Sarkozy and Merkel to come through with strong proposals that the rest of the EU will almost inevitably have to follow.
"The determination of the Chancellor and myself is absolutely total," Sarkozy said.
But there is no denying the two nations have different agendas.
Merkel takes the frugal, hard-nosed line, trying to protect taxpayers as much as possible from having to bail out profligate nations like Greece. She also cherishes the independence of the European Central Bank and wants to keep it out of the EU rescue fund. As the biggest EU funder, Germany has the most clout.
France has the EU's second-biggest economy, but Sarkozy has to worry about French banks that are heavily involved in several EU nations teetering on the edge of bankruptcy. He is trying to protect those financial institutions from losing too much money and affecting his chances of re-election.
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