Merkel has work cut out in US visit

Angela Merkel’s visit to Washington will be among the most important — and most awkward — of her career. The German chancellor must attempt to strike up a decent relationship with US President Donald Trump, despite the scorn he has poured on her policies.

Merkel did not seek this challenge. Nonetheless, it could be useful if it prompts an overdue rethink of Germany’s place in the world. Since the Second World War German leaders have, understandably, shrunk from the idea that their country can exercise leadership on the global stage. Their view was that German power should be exercised through “Europe”. But the EU is no longer enough. Foreign policy challenges are crowding in: a US president who questions the Nato alliance, war in Ukraine, refugees from the Middle East, Brexit and Turkey’s nationalist turn. Germany needs a more imaginative and assertive approach to the world and an appreciation of the limits of what it can do alone.

Start with military spending. In the age of Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, the issue can no longer be avoided. Germany spends less than 1.2% of GDP on defence, compared with a Nato target of 2%. This has to change and Germany has pledged to meet the Nato target by the mid-2020s.

But, with the agreement of its allies, it would make sense to spend some of the additional money on broader security issues rather than pouring it all into rearmament. German largesse could go into the funding of proper border police for the EU and refugee processing centres and stabilisation funds for North African countries such as Libya.

Germany also faces crucial diplomatic challenges. On Brexit, the Merkel government (or its successor) has to balance maintaining EU unity with the broader interest in a solid economic and strategic relationship with Britain. London, March 10.