The Germans elected a new leader, but what does the people in the country hardest hit by the euro crisis and the subsequent budget cuts feel about that? Experts believe few things will be changed policy-wise, but Merkel's challenge is to gain the trust and approval of the countries that have been hardest hit by the euro crisis.
Germany is one of the countries that have tackled the euro crisis best, and the German people recently reelected Angela Merkel's party CDU for another four-year term, meaning she will most likely remain chancellor through this term. What does this mean for the euro and particularly Greece? On an election tour last month, Dr. Merkel stated, “the crisis emerged over many years, through founding errors in the euro. For example, Greece should not have been admitted into the euro area.” [1] While this was the last of many statements that provoked the Greek, it must also be seen in the context that it was said. The German people feel that they are the ones that have to pay to bail out Greece, so the statement must also be seen as a strategic move. Either way, Dr. Merkel’s success in leading Germany through the euro crisis is a big reason why she and her party got reelected.
So while Merkel points to Greece and its mismanagement of budgets as a big part of the reason why the euro crisis happened, the Greek sees her as a symbol of budget cuts demanded on Greece [2] and given that Merkel will remain chancellor, the German policy towards Greece will most likely remain mostly unchanged, which means that Greece is expected to keep public spending down until its economy have recovered sufficiently.
Greeks also see Merkel as trying to conquer what was lost after World War II, which can be seen in demonstrations across the countries that have suffered most from public budget cuts such as Greece, Italy and Spain, where protesters and news media some times have used images that depicts Merkel as Hitler to show their dismay with her politics.
Analysis
Analysis
The challenge for Merkel in the next four years will be to balance the fragile relationship between trying to stabilize the euro, create trust from and help the bankrupt EU countries to rebuild their economies, public sector and job markets, while at the same time, avoiding giving them too many bailouts as this angers citizens of the wealthier EU countries.
Sources:
Savaricas, N. (2013, August 28). Angela Merkel says Greece should never have been allowed to join the euro - Business News - Business - The Independent. The Independent | News | UK and Worldwide News | Newspaper. Retrieved September 27, 2013, from http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/angela-merkel-says-greece-should-never-have-been-allowed-to-join-the-euro-8788435.html
image: http://www.businessinsider.com/photos-protests-in-spain-and-greece-2012-9?op=1
Interesting reading:
http://globalpublicsquare.blogs.cnn.com/2013/09/21/will-merkel-practice-what-she-preaches/
Reviving the euro-zone economy will not be easy. Although the severe recessions in Greece and elsewhere seem to be bottoming out and deficit projections are starting to improve. However, too many people take Merkel's role by default as the big parent of EU. In my opinion, her foremost role is the Chancellor of Germany, so the primary challenge now for her is to to put together a government wise enough to make the necessary changes and strong enough to sell them to the German people.
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