News Analysis: Germany, US -- Partners Drifting Apart?

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Monday, December 16, 2002

News Analysis: Germany, US -- Partners Drifting Apart?

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It is a time to which Americans and Germans can look back with nostalgia. The relations between Germany and the United States, strategic partners for half a century, were never so tense in 2002 since the end of World War II.

WASHINGTON'S ANGER

In May, the relations were still "in an excellent state" as US president George W. Bush picked Germany as his first station in a European tour. Both sides were speaking of "a good future" for mutual relations.

Months later, when Washington disclosed its intention of launching a military strike against Iraq, its European ally threw out a strong voice, announcing that it was against such a war and adamantly ruled out any form of German participation in the "adventure."

The then German government led by Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder was doing its best to win the September election. Schroeder managed to regain the power, partly thanks to his firm objection to a possible Iraq war.

However, on the other side of the Atlantic, Washington was angered by the move of the traditional ally from which it used to hear "yes" to its decisions, despite Schroeder's explanation that even "good friends could have different opinions."

It was for the first time in post-War Germany that an incumbent Chancellor has broken ranks with the United States on an important foreign policy issue.

For many in the United States, the Iraqi issue was a matter of being "with us or against us." US National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice and Hawkish Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld stated that such steadfast opposition had "poisoned" bilateral relations.

Oil was added to flames when a German government minister was alleged to have compared Bush's tactics in handling domestic affairs to Hitler's.

Although Justice Minister Herta Daeubler-Gmelin said she never made the remarks and she was misquoted, she resigned from her post shortly afterward. The relations reached the "freezing point" with the alleged Hitler-Bush comparison. The White House reacted coolly to Schroeder's re-election win, issuing a short statement that neither congratulated him nor mentioned him by name. At a meeting of NATO partners in Warsaw in September, US Defense Secretary Rumsfeld snubbed his German counterpart Peter Struck, referring to him in a press conference simply as "that person."

A senior US official said the administration was displeased about Germany's repeated expression of opinions on other issues such as Washington's attitude on global warming, the death penalty and the International Criminal Court as well as restrictions on free trade.

GERMANY IS NO LONGER US'S "MODEL PUPIL"

In post-war Germany, to support war faces strong opposition. Last year, Germany had big difficulties in sending peacekeeping troops to Afghanistan. Schroeder only managed to do it with a no-confidence motion in the parliament.

In fact, the government consisting of Social Democrats and Greens held reservations about Washington's hard stance on Iraq from the beginning. The Greens, well-known pacifists, are especially against war and any German military involvement. It recently even rejected any use of German airspace and military bases by US forces if the war were waged without United Nations authorization.

In May, when Bush was paying a visit to Germany, Washington's attitude toward the Iraq issue was already a concern for the German side.

The then parliamentary leader of Schroeder's Social Democratic Party, now the Defense Minister, Peter Stuck said: "As long as it remains unclear that Saddam Hussein is in fact harboring and supporting Al Qaida terrorists, there is no reason to attack Iraq." At that time, Washington had a different concern from today.

A clear-cut objection to a possible Iraq war came in August when the election campaign entered the decisive phase. The so-called red-green coalition consisting of Schroeder's SPD and junior governing partner the Green party was running a cliffhanger campaign with the opposition and most people estimating that Schroeder could lose.

Schroeder clearly voiced his strong stance as he knew that 80 percent of German voters were against the possible war led by the US.

To support its anti-war stance, the German government said the situation in Afghanistan and Balkans is yet to stabilize and an Iraq war could cause disturbance in the whole Middle East region. Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer also complained that US lacked a clear conception for the post-war Iraq.

At a time when the public concentrates on a possible war against Iraq, the German government organized the second Afghanistan conference on the country's reconstruction in Germany on December 2, a move widely seen to divert world attention from Iraq and reiterate Germany's view that the war on terror is not over and an Iraq war is inappropriate.

The German Defense Ministry said the German army is already overstretched, with eight military operations outside Germany and almost 9,000 soldiers stationed abroad, which means it doesn't have the ability to deploy more soldiers.

Some observers deem that Germany's public objection also showed its ambition to become more independent from Washington and a politically more important country since it is already the third-biggest economy in the world.

The German-language weekly Spiegel commented that Berlin is seeking a way between "self-confidence rising and shamefaced submission (to the United States)."

Some officials, including Chancellor Schroeder, have said Germany would go the "German way." The SPD's foreign policy expert and coordinator for German-American cooperation Karsten Voigt said: "We do what we ourselves think is meaningful. We do nothing what we don't think is correct."

GERMANY MUST REPAIR RIFT

However, the United States is not a country Germany can really offend. Analysts say Schroeder had to take a strong stance toward Bush's Iraq policy to please voters, but also had to do his best to repair relations with Washington soon after the election.

For a long run, Germany still has to depend on NATO to secure its security and realize its strategic interests in Europe. NATO is one of the core elements of Germany's foreign policy. It is necessary to keep sound relations with the United States, the NATO leader.

Also important is that US is Germany's indispensable trade partner. Trade between the US and Germany -- the first and third largest economies in the world respectively -- totals some 90 billion US dollars a year. The United States is Germany's second largest trade partner.

"We urgently have to repair relations with America," said Klaus Braeunig of the Federation of German Industry. "

And most Germans still feel indebted to the US for the massive financial support it provided the country after the Second World War to help Germany re-emerge as an economic powerhouse of Europe.They feel morally unacceptable to completely break ranks with Washington.

While insisting on rejecting active participation in a possible Iraq war, a small softening of attitude could be seen in Schroeder's recent Iraq policy. Last month, he announced a plan to allow Washington unrestricted use of its German airbases and overflight rights. This week, he made it clear that Washington's request for NATO's AWACS (airborne warning and control system) surveillance planes with German personnel operating them would be met in case of an Iraq war. He denied the possible involvement was "active participation."

The announcements were the clearest statements yet of how Schroeder is seeking to improve relations with the United States while remaining consistent with the anti-war stance, analysts say.

In Afghanistan, Germany has agreed to co-lead with the Netherlands the international peacekeeping force early next year and raise the German contingent there from 1,280 to 2,500, a move expected by and believed to please Washington.

In fact, Schroeder began to repair relations with Washington soon after he was re-elected. Traditionally, a German chancellor'sfirst post-election trip has been to Paris. But this time Schroeder picked London just a day after he was re-elected. Few doubted that he was seeking help from Prime Minister Tony Blair, Bush's firm ally, to mediate between Bush and him. High-ranking officials went to Washington to try to warm strained relations. Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer visited Washington first, Defense Minister Peter Struck followed. Yet a visit by Schroeder is not in sight.

US ALSO NEEDS GERMANY

For its part, the United States knows that a long estrangement from the Germans is not in American interests either.

In its long-standing European strategy, Washington sees its relations with Berlin a focal point of its involvement in Europe. Germany stands at the center of European affairs and is a key partner in U.S. relations with Europeans. At present, US still has over 91,000 military personnel in Germany.

A war against Iraq still needs German help, although without active involvement. In preparations for a war against Iraq, Washington has asked 50 countries for help, including Germany. German airspace and military bases as well as AWACS surveillance planes with German personnel operating them are necessary to launch a war on Iraq.

Though the U.S. is clearly capable of taking out Saddam alone, Bush will need allies after the fight, especially Germany, the biggest economy in Europe. Germany rejects participating in war directly, but has hinted it could participate in the reconstruction process of the country if war is unavoidable.

In the NATO summit meeting in Prague last month, Bush and Schroeder shook hands and chatted, although there was no one-on-one formal talks as Bush held with other European leaders.

"Germany is an important friend of the United States. We've got a relationship to maintain. We will maintain," Bush said at the meeting, hinting that the work of US-German relations would go on despite tensions.

COMPLETE RECOVERY NOT IN SIGHT

The German-American relations are going out from the valley, but a relationship as close as before can't be seen in a short term, analysts say. Nothing has changed in German policies that have angered the White House. Although some small concessions like providing military bases could be possible, it will be certain that Germany will not participate in an Iraq war directly as it has repeatedly said, an attitude which keeps making Washington unhappy.

Some even think the chilled relations can't be repaired fully under the incumbent leaders for personal relations are sometimes very important for country-to-country relations. In an interview with Germany's Handelsblatt daily newspaper, Pentagon adviser Richard Perle even suggested that if Schroeder wanted to improve ties between the two countries, he should resign.

But Schroeder will not do it. Once a journalist asked him if he felt he should apologize to Bush, Schroeder answered: "I don't understand your question."

Source: Xinhua

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