[Right to left] Elie Wiesel, President Obama, Chancellor
Merkel and Bertrand Herz observe a moment of silence
for the millions of people who died at the hands of the
Nazis, at the Buchenwald death camp, June 5.
Financial Times Deutschland, Germany
After Obama's Visit, Germans Sense
Waning Influence
Translated
By Jonathan Lobsien
GERMAN
EDITORIAL ROUNDUP
A
visit of grand gestures, but one tied to the past: In Germany, newspaper commentators
view President Obama's visit extremely critically. They are particularly
displeased with his non-committal distance.
"Merkel
has accomplished quite a feat getting along with two U.S. Presidents who could
hardly be more different. In this regard, Obama gets the same treatment as Bush.
Without bluster, but self-confidently and persistently, the chancellor put
forward her positions and defended German interests. Bush never sought help
closing Guantanamo, whereas Obama wants to shut it down without sensibly
considering the fate of the detainees. Although Obama has graciously called Merkel
a friend and Germany an important transatlantic partner, there is also the
reverse argument: from good friends, one expects a lot of help, for instance
with the military mission in Afghanistan."
"Up
to now, all the U.S. president has had left for his most important allies have
been gestures. Obama has reminded us of the end of the Second World War by
traveling to Buchenwald and the English Channel, where the allied invasion
began 65 years ago. The content of these political speeches - unlike his speech
in Cairo - was meaningless. It seems that in Washington since the Bush
era, although the tone has changed, America's perception of the Old World has
not. We only suspected this before - but now we know: Obama has set his
priorities just like every other U.S. President. And they are not, at the
moment, in Europe."
PRESIDENT OBAMA'S REMARKS AT BUCHENWALD DEATH CAMP
"The
American President has it tough, but more than a few groan inwardly because he
places such great value on symbolism. Why can't we simply let ourselves be
inspired by Obama's basic message and forget all the interpretations thrust
upon us by his trip? In our world of volatility, we must remind ourselves how
humanity again and again slips suddenly into ruin. Today in Normandy, Obama
will recall that the reason Europe has been able to live in peace and
prosperity for so long are the young men who lost their lives in the invasion
and abolition of the Nazi regime."
"It
was the first time a U.S. President had set foot in a former concentration camp
and in doing so, showed his respect for all the victims of the Nazi regime.
With his walk through the memorial site, he once again reminded Germans of the
role that along with the Russians, the Americans and British played in the liberation
of Europe. Without the swift advance of the allied armies, which led to the
surrender of the Wehrmacht [German
Armed Forces] on the 8th of May, 1945, the Nazis would have gone on murdering
for many more months."
Posted by WORLDMEETS.US
HOLOCAUST SURVIVOR ELIE WIESEL AND OBAMA AT BUCHENWALD
"Certainly, Angela
Merkel hasn't quite warmed up to Obama; she finds the jubilation that surrounds
him suspect. And the President is shying away because of the sober,
emotion-free style of the chancellor, as well as her refusal to allow him to
speak at the Brandenburg Gate back when he was a candidate. Yet despite quite
differing interests: Merkel's reason and Obama's vision are not inevitably in
opposition. Political cooperation and the exchange of ideas can overcome
personal idiosyncrasies. If they wish to do so."
"Dresden can be well satisfied with this visit. It was a great
honor for the city to welcome the world's most powerful man on one of his first
foreign trips. Especially since the Americans themselves chose Dresden and held
fast to that decision despite scheduling difficulties. They paid tribute to the
city as an international place of reconciliation, for which the Frauenkirche
has become such a strong symbol - and in a way that remains unknown to
Dresdeners themselves [the Frauenkirche was rebuilt after WWII as a
symbol of reconciliation between the Allies and Axis]."
"Obama's visit to
Germany had to be short and sweet; for him, the trip was about all about the
commemoration at the Buchenwald concentration camp and a visit to the U.S.
military hospital at Landstuhl.
But somehow, Angela Merkel once again succeeded in getting into the picture
with him. That's important for the chancellor - it's campaign season. That's
also why Social Democratic candidate Frank-Walter Steinmeier was only permitted
in the group photo - politics can be petty."
"Obama doesn't want to
give the impression that with all the criticism, he's revoking the principle of
solidarity with the Israelis. The existence of Israel within secure borders in
a peaceful environment remains for the Americans - as it does for Germans - a
historic commitment. What could have better demonstrated that than a visit to the
spot [Buchenwald] that was chosen yesterday? From a German perspective, this is
a bit unfortunate. The visit put our country in the spotlight of global
public opinion. One would have welcomed a more intensive look at the free and
democratic Germany of today. As a presidential candidate, Obama had already used
Germany once in the past year as a mere backdrop, during his speech at the
Victory Column in Berlin."
"For the German hosts
there was very little time, because Obama had little new to discuss with the
campaigning chancellor. Since the NATO and G20 summits, the Americans have
taken note of the areas of cooperation and a subtle attitude of denial by the Europeans.
The non-committal, polite exchanges between Obama and Merkel in Dresden speak volumes:
If not for the people back home, a visit to Germany would simply have been
unnecessary for the President."
"The pictures of Obama laying
down flowers and speaking before the front gate of Buchenwald together with the
German Chancellor and two survivors of Nazi barbarism will go down in history. On
the eve of his trip to the concentration camp memorial site, it was deemed only
as a kind of compensation for Israel, which Obama did not visit. But such
small-minded calculations aren't fair to Obama's great historical and moral
policy approach."
"The exploitation of gestures,
images and symbolism has always been an integral part of politics - and by no means
the worse part, as long as it doesn't get in the way of the substance of
politics. In any case, the radiance of German-American relations today has its
limits. In the G8, as in NATO, as in Afghanistan, but also in Obama's itinerary,
the waning importance of Germany is obvious. As much as the campaigning
chancellor may like sunbathing in Obama's popularity, she must eventually do something
more than share a friendly smile."
