At least when it comes to Iran, German chancellor Angela Merkel seems to be taking a rather tough stand. Addressing a joint session of Congress yesterday, Merkel said:
Tolerance does not mean "anything goes." There must be zero tolerance towards all those who show no respect for the inalienable rights of the individual and who violate human rights. Zero tolerance must also be shown if, for example, weapons of mass destruction fall into the hands of Iran and possibly threaten our security!
Iran must be aware of this. Iran knows our offer, but Iran also knows where we draw the line: A nuclear bomb in the hands of an Iranian president who denies the Holocaust, threatens Israel, and denies Israel the right to exist, is not acceptable!
For me, Israel's security will never be open to negotiation. Not only Israel is threatened but the entire free world. Whoever threatens Israel also threatens us!...
Of course she then ended on a plea for the United States to commit to Copenhagen and climate change by December (not likely):
We can already see where this wasteful attitude towards our future leads: In the Arctic icebergs are melting, in Africa people are becoming refugees due to environmental damage [as opposed to the Janjaweed], and global sea levels are rising. I am pleased that you in your work together with President Obama attach such significance to protecting our climate. For we all know: We have no time to lose! We need an agreement at the climate conference in Copenhagen in December. We have to agree on one objective -- global warming must not exceed two degrees Celsius.
But did I mention how tough she sounded on Iran? No surprise, Merkel's idea of drawing a line is economic sanctions, though as Volker Perthes, director of the German Institute for International and Security Affairs, points out, the chancellor is now willing to enact sanctions even if it means only the United States and Europe. Speaking at the American Institute for Contemporary German Studies, Perthes said that while Merkel would obviously prefer going through the Security Council, she has been warning German businesses to prepare for sanctions whether or not China and Russia are on board. Perthes also notes that Merkel is still deeply committed to Afghanistan, and if there is to be a troop increase, we shouldn't expect one until January at the earliest. She is, however, waiting for Obama to make a decision first.
Changes have quietly been made to the German contingent in Afghanistan: For instance, they no longer have to wait to be attacked before they can engage the Taliban. This might sound silly but there are reasons for this. That Germans are uncomfortable using the term "war" (krieg) or even discussing such matters is the result of, in Perthes's words, "successful reeducation." Perthes does think his fellow citizens would better support the Afghan operation if politicians openly talked to them about it and explained clearly why they are there -- something that has yet to happen (in Germany or the United States). But remember the Spiegel article from 2006 in which a British officer told his German counterpart, "We're sending two coffins home every week, while you Germans hand out crayons and wool blankets"? And the American who told a Merkel adviser that "the Germans have to learn how to kill"? But let's not get ahead of ourselves.
