Yahoo – AFP, Frank Zeller, 12 Fen 2015
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German
Chancellor Angela Merkel (C) shakes hands with officials during a round
table
meeting, part of the European Council Summit, at EU headquarters in
Brussels on
February 12, 2015 (AFP Photo/Alain Jocard)
|
Berlin
(AFP) - Germany's Angela Merkel was the first to concede after a Ukraine peace
plan was reached in Minsk that "big hurdles" remain to silence the
guns, but many are already hailing her as Europe's peacemaker-in-chief.
During 10
long months of fighting, Merkel and her foreign minister have doggedly kept up
the dialogue with Moscow, the first time that post-war Germany has taken the
lead in trying to resolve a military conflict.
The
chancellor has acted shoulder-to-shoulder with President Francois Hollande, to
signal Franco-German unity and perhaps to allow her to share the blame if it
all goes horribly wrong.
 |
France's
President Francois Hollande (R)
and German Chancellor Angela Merkel hug
each
other during a press conference after
a summit on Ukraine, in Minsk on Feb.12,
2015 (AFP Photo/Kirill Kudryavtsev)
|
She then
jetted off to a Brussels summit, where all eyes were again on Merkel as
debt-hit Greece seeks to renegotiate the tough loans programme she has
championed through the eurozone crisis years.
It is a
sign of her standing that even Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis --
despite Athens' anger at Merkel's austerity diktat -- this week complimented
the trained physicist as "by far and away the most astute politician in
Europe".
Through the
Ukraine conflict, Merkel, a Russian speaker who grew up in communist East
Germany, has spoken more than 40 times to Russian President Vladimir Putin, a former
KGB officer in the German Democratic Republic fluent in her language.
Last week
Merkel, often derided as painfully cautious, flew with Hollande to the Kremlin
in a last-ditch effort to prevent greater bloodshed, if not a full-blown
East-West confrontation.
All the
while she has insisted "there is no military solution", resisting
pressure building in Washington on US President Barack Obama to send arms to
Kiev's embattled troops, a move Merkel fears would only escalate the war.
'Nothing
goes without Merkel'
In the
17-hour crunch summit in Minsk, following a gruelling week of shuttle
diplomacy, Merkel, 60, harnessed what she has called her "camel-like"
ability to store up sleep like water and negotiate through the night.
If the
ceasefire takes effect, holds and ends the crisis, the pastor's daughter often
described as "the world's most powerful woman" will likely be praised
as having achieved her finest hour as she nears 10 years at the helm of
Europe's top economy.
German
mass-circulation daily Bild has hailed Merkel as "the world
chancellor", marvelling at a week of frantic diplomacy that took her to
Kiev, Moscow, Munich, Washington, Ottawa and Minsk.
"In
the conflict with Russia, the US has taken a backseat and let the EU take the
lead, with Angela Merkel at the helm," commented German news weekly Die
Zeit.
Vienna
daily Die Presse said that "nothing goes without Merkel on the European
stage, she dominates Europe".
"Germany
has shed the restraint it had imposed on itself since the Second World War ...
If not Merkel, who else would have got Russian President Vladimir Putin at
least to the negotiating table?"
At home,
cautious praise came even from her bitterest political enemies.
"That
is a first success of diplomacy that could turn out to be meaningful,"
conceded Gregor Gysi, leader of the far-left Linke party. "She deserves
respect for this."
 |
(L-R)
Russia's President Vladimir Putin, France's President Francois Hollande,
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and German Chancellor Angela Merkel in
Minsk on February 11, 2015 (AFP Photo/Maxim Malinovsky)
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Senior
Social Democrat Rolf Muetzenich voiced "big respect for Angela Merkel's
achievements", saying her busy schedule must have pushed her to her
physical limits.
'Limited
influence'
However,
not all have joined the Merkel fan club.
News weekly
Der Spiegel in a commentary this week conceded that three-time election winner
Merkel is "impressive", but went on to say that so far she had
achieved few substantial outcomes.
"Quite
clearly, the chancellor has since the beginning completely underestimated
Putin's cunning and determination," it judged. "She should have been
either harder or softer -- her middle path has hardly impressed Putin.
"Angela
Merkel, much-admired, is nothing more than a politician who misjudges
developments, makes bad choices and has limited influence."
Judy
Dempsey, senior associate with Carnegie Europe, said that Merkel had
"discovered foreign policy" after Obama "delegated"
handling the Ukraine crisis to her, a task no other European leader proved
equal to.
"The
fact that she stuck it out for 17 hours shows her experience as a negotiator at
the EU summits," Dempsey said. "Putin had to discover that here was a
leader who seriously wants some kind of peace in Ukraine.
"Her
role has been absolutely crucial, but the big question is: what happens now if
the deal doesn't stick? She's carried an awful lot of risks."
 |
Merkel,
Obama reaffirm partnership, vow path of diplomacy
in Ukraine
|
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