All of her predecessors to become Germany’s next chancellor went missing at a summit last week to meet with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris.
Their talks at the Elysee Palace focused on the extent of the EU epidemic, climate change and self-defense measures – all of which are important for Angela Merkel’s successor.
Macron is not the only EU leader eagerly awaiting the outcome of the election.
The turmoil in the bloc’s largest economy, as well as the departure of a long-serving leader, has far-reaching political and economic tensions.
Merkel has played a key role in shaping the EU’s response to problems such as the 2008 economic crisis, the emergence of more than one million in 2015, and the current coronavirus epidemic.
But his signing prevented Germany from displaying German territories in Europe, researchers told Al Jazeera, leaving many unresolved issues – such as responding to pro-government regimes in Poland and Hungary, and the need for China-Russia cooperation.
“[Merkel’s] The main way was to deal with the problems … The main issue we will face in the upcoming election is to see if the next chancellor will have a clear vision, “said Sophie Pornschlegel, a data analyst at the European Policy Center.
Olaf Scholz, who led the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in the run-up to the election, and Armin Laschet, whose Christian Democrats hope to do better in the past after the war, were all eager to show off their European counterparts.
Finance Minister Scholz, a key contributor to the epidemic’s recovery, has called for EU bankruptcy insurance, and wants to address taxes and technical giants.
“Moving forward in Europe is the most important international event in Germany,” Scholz told the Bundestag on Tuesday.
“[We must] ensure that there are no divisions between north and south and west and east Europe, but that the transition to Europe is successful. ”
Laschet, originally from Aachen, a powerful western city in France, is a volunteer for Europhile and believes that a stronger alliance could tackle the continent, problems such as epidemics and climate change.
Euroscepticism is a political malady in Germany and all major political parties call for EU integration on issues such as digital, foreign policy, epidemic response, climate protection and migration.
Only the left-wing party, which sees the EU as the only project that needs major reform, as well as Germany’s right-wing approach, which encourages the departure of the EU, is well-known.
“There is a strong consensus among all parties that European integration is a good thing and that we need a strong and democratic alliance in Europe,” said Tanja Börzel, a political scientist at the Free University of Berlin.
“All of them are similar in terms of Europe and other differences that have a lot to do with economic cooperation.”
During Merkel’s presidency, Germany held on to the Eurozone, especially demanding that money for the recovery of countries affected by the recession should be followed by economic instability – which critics say led to inequality and the promotion of fair-minded populism.
The epidemic has also raised the issue of money laundering and debt sharing, a conversation that has sparked fears among Germans, who oppose the idea of being a contributor to the weak economy of southern Europe.
Although Merkel once said that the so-called “eurobonds” would not happen in her lifetime, the epidemic forced a slight change.
Last year, Germany contributed to the recovery of the EU epidemic, in which $ 800 billion ($ 940bn) in bonds will be paid by the end of 2026 to repay loans to member states to rebuild their economies.
“With the COVID-19 crisis, Merkel and Scholz together put Germany out of the ‘financial crisis’,” Börzel said.
“This was very important to ensure that funding for the Next Generation Europe program was made available, in support of the debt. Without Germany’s complete change, this would not be possible.
The question of how to use it as a backdrop to stabilize the coalition is still at stake, and we will probably discuss it in negotiations to form a next government.
The CDU and the Free Democratic Party (FDP) are at loggerheads, while the SDP and Greens consider the options they share and have access to credit.
CDU Secretary General Paul Ziemiak recently criticized the SDP, warning voters that Scholz’s ideas would “flood the EU” with German currency.
“German taxpayers, retirees and savers can incur debt abroad,” he told the t-website.
The SDP disputed this, with Carsten Schneider whipping it out and saying it was a sign of fear over the fall of voters.
Security
Germany’s recent failure to deport all its citizens and allies in Afghanistan before the departure of US military personnel has sparked significant interest in Europe’s reliance on the United States for security.
In a daily business newsletter in Handelsblatt on Wednesday, Laschet called on Germany and Europe to take part in making security decisions, and to strengthen their position in NATO.
He also supported the establishment of an EU Commissioner for Climate Change and for Europol to become a “European FBI” against violence.
“This time I will call for foreign policy and security in Europe,” he wrote.
The Christian Democrats, SDP, Greens and FDP all support the establishment of an EU military, as well as a defense body.
In the wake of the Kabul controversy, Macron urged the EU to establish “independence” on economic and military issues, a possibility that would be crucial for Germany’s next chancellor ahead of France’s elections early next year.
“The French have always said they are looking forward to talks on a number of security talks, even to the point of sharing nuclear weapons. And they have been waiting for several years,” said Sarah Bressan, a researcher at the Berlin Public Global Institute Institute in Berlin.