Voice of America
26 Nov 2021, 11:37 GMT+10
LONDON - Germany will have a new government next month after three parties agreed this week to form a coalition, ousting the ruling Christian Democrats, the party of outgoing Chancellor Angela Merkel. The new government faces an early test of foreign policy, as Russia has deployed tens of thousands of troops on Europe's eastern borders.
Members of the Social Democratic Pary, or SDP, which narrowly won the highest vote share in September's election, agreed to lead a coalition alongside the Green party and the Free Democrats. SDP leader Olaf Scholz, who will be Germany's next chancellor, pledged to strengthen Germany's existing alliances in a speech Wednesday.
'Our friendship with France, our partnership with the United States, and a commitment to peace and prosperity in the world are the pillars on which our foreign policy is based,' Scholz said in Berlin.
That peace appears increasingly fragile on Europe's eastern borders. Russia has deployed around 90,000 troops alongside military hardware close to its border with Ukraine and continues to support separatist rebels in Ukraine's Donbass region.
On Thursday, Merkel warned of tougher sanctions.
'Any further aggression against the sovereignty of Ukraine would carry a high price. That's totally clear,' she told reporters.
Support for Belarus
Russia is also supporting Belarus, which Europe accuses of manufacturing a migrant crisis on its border with Poland. So how will Germany's new government deal with these immediate security challenges?
Scholz has yet to detail his policy toward Russia. The 177-page coalition agreement restates strong German support for NATO as the basis of European security, noted Liana Fix, the program director for international affairs at the Körber-Stiftung analyst group in Berlin.
'Broadly, there's continuity, but what is interesting is that there's also quite a strong rhetoric when it comes to supporting civil society in Russia, and also quite a strong rhetoric when it comes to countering the autocratic challenge that is coming from Russia. And here you definitely see the footprint of the Green party which has entered the coalition,' Fix told VOA.
Green party leader Annalena Baerbock will be Germany's next foreign minister. A first major decision will be to approve the opening of the completed Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline connecting Russia and Germany, which critics fear could be used by the Kremlin to blackmail Europe. The U.S. recently tightened sanctions on Russian companies involved in its construction.
'The Greens, that were at the beginning actually opposed to Nord Stream 2, did not want to use their political capital to enforce a stop of Nord Stream 2 in the coalition treaty,' Fix said.
What of the personal relationships? Merkel was raised in East Germany under communism and speaks fluent Russian. 'This gave her special access to the Russian president,' Fix told VOA. 'Olaf Scholz doesn't have this background, but he's very much aware of the situation, where he always argued that 'might does not make right' and that this is one of the bases for his understanding of foreign policy and also of policy towards Russia.'
'The world will change'
In his speech Wednesday after striking the coalition agreement, Scholz said Germany must be ready for a new world order.
'The world will change,' he said. 'It will become multipolar, which means there will be many strong countries and powers across the globe which will have influence on what happens in the future.'
For now, much of the new government's focus will be on the soaring coronavirus infection rate at home. In Germany this week, COVID-19-related deaths surpassed 100,000 since the start of the pandemic, a grim milestone as the coalition prepares to take the reins of power in December.
Get a daily dose of Vietnam Tribune news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Vietnam Tribune.
More InformationDhaka [Bangladesh], July 12 (ANI): The three-day second-round tariff talks between Bangladesh and the United States have ended without...
New Delhi [India], July 12 (ANI): International Cricket Council (ICC) chairman Jay Shah lauded Italy and the Netherlands after both...
Lahore [Pakistan], July 12 (ANI): Police in Faisalabad have arrested two suspects, Bilal Nawaz and Umar Aslam, in connection with the...
New Delhi [India], July 12 (ANI): The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has released its annual report for 2024, highlighting India's...
London [UK], July 12 (ANI): Shubman Gill, who has developed an appetite for breaking milestones, continued with the trend and added...
Dhaka [Bangladesh], July 11 (ANI): Bangladesh has agreed to work with Malaysia to investigate allegations of terror activity against...
ATLANTA, Georgia: The United States is facing its worst measles outbreak in more than three decades, with 1,288 confirmed cases so...
In the past month alone, 23 Israeli soldiers have been killed in Gaza—three more than the number of remaining living hostages held...
LONDON, U.K.: At least 13 people are believed to have taken their own lives as a result of the U.K.'s Post Office scandal, in which...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: Travelers at U.S. airports will no longer need to remove their shoes during security screenings, Department of Homeland...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: An elaborate impersonation scheme involving artificial intelligence targeted senior U.S. and foreign officials in...
SLUBICE, Poland: Poland reinstated border controls with Germany and Lithuania on July 7, following Germany's earlier reintroduction...