Schroeder to Europe: Unite Vs. U.S.
Tuesday, 28 December 1999
B E R L I N (AP)
EUROPE MUST act more like a single country if it wants to challenge U.S.
economic and political dominance, Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder said
Tuesday.
Asked in a television interview whether the United States lacked
consideration for its allies, Schroeder said: "Yes, that certainly is so.
"There is a risk of America looking inward because of its huge economic
power and its huge political weight, and it would be regrettable if that
process continues."
But European nations have to do their part by uniting behind common
goals, Schroeder said, noting the 15-nation European Union's decision this
year to appoint a senior diplomat as a first step toward a hoped-for joint
foreign policy.
"Whining about U.S. dominance doesn't help. We have to act," Schroeder
said in the interview with Phoenix public TV.
He portrayed Germany as a European power with growing
self-confidence, underscoring a more assertive tone in foreign affairs that
sets Schroeder apart from his predecessor, Helmut Kohl.
"The old theory of Germany as an economic giant but a political midget
was over with German unification" in 1990, Schroeder said.
Germany needs to show "measured self-confidence" while remaining
conscious of its Nazi past, said Schroeder, the first German chancellor with
no personal memory of World War II. |
