Financial Times Deutschland,
Germany
Merkel 'Conquered' By Bush's 'Texas Charm Offensive'
EDITORIAL
Translated by Bob Skinner
July 14, 2006
Germany - Financial Times Deutschland - Original
Article (German) 
U.S. President
George W. Bush conquered the German Chancellor with a straightforward Texas
charm offensive. A kiss on the cheek here, a gushing bit of praise there.
Bush's
visit to Meckleburg-Vorpommern left no doubt that he sees Angela Merkel as his
most important ally in Europe. The Chancellor succumbed to the temptation and
let herself be taken in.
In
Stralsund it wasn't two partners who stood before the press, but cook and
server. Bush prepared, Merkel served. Whether the topic was Iran, the Middle
East or Russia, there was total unity. That even went as far as Merkel adopting
from Bush unusual terms like "Tyranny."
There are
at this moment no fundamental differences between the U.S. and Germany. That
Merkel didn't reiterate her criticism of Guantanamo in Stralsund shouldn't be
held against her; Bush already knows what she thinks of that. And for a Chancellor
hosting the President of the United States for the first time, it's not easy to
strike the right note. After all, a guest should always feel that he's among
friends.
Merkel
has already earned laurels for her foreign policy. The German-American
relationship, so wrecked during the Schroeder administration, is back on the tracks,
though that has more to with the changed international environment than
Merkel's policies. Anyway, she did cut a
fine figure during her visit to Washington.
The
question of whether the new transatlantic partnership will survive real
political differences is still open. Watch
and see if the Chancellor will then dare to talk straight.
[LATEST NEWS PHOTOS: Bush in Germany].