Armin Laschet in Berlin, on January 16.
Photographer: Christian Marquardt / Pool / Bloomberg
Photographer: Christian Marquardt / Pool / Bloomberg
Supporters of the man who could become Germany’s next leader rushed to defend him, after his unorthodox foreign policy views raised questions about his credentials to succeed Angela Merkel.
Newly elected Christian Democrat leader Merkel, Armin Laschet, incorrectly wrote in 2016 that the Obama administration supported the militant Islamic State in Syria. Two years earlier, after Russia’s incursion into Crimea, Laschet criticized a wave of “marketable anti-Putin populism” spread in Germany.
“I do not agree with those critics who claim that Laschet has an underdeveloped foreign policy profile,” party ally David McAllister, head of the European Parliament’s foreign committee, told reporters on Tuesday. “Armin Laschet has my full support.”
The Merkel party chooses the committed leader to support its legacy
As party leader, Laschet is in pole position to run for chancellor in the September election. If he succeeds in giving up the chancellery, he will have to deal regularly with US President-elect Joe Biden on a number of security issues, from the Middle East to Russia. After Biden’s victory, Laschet hurried to congratulate him, praising the result as proof that the election can still be won without a populist campaign.
“Armin Laschet is a convinced European and knows the United States,” McAllister said. “Of course, there may be differences of opinion between Europeans and Americans on certain issues.”
The CDU can afford another wrong step. The head of the country’s most populous state was elected party leader on Saturday after Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, elected by Merkel as her successor two years ago, resigned after a series of blunders.
Candidate to cancel
Although the party leader continues to be the chancellor’s candidate for Germany’s conservative bloc, this step is not automatic this time. The Bavarian sister party of the CSU will have an important say in the decision, and Markus Soeder, the leader of the Christian Social Union, is currently well ahead in the polls.
And, in reality, the US has little to fear from Laschet, analysts say. Describing Laschet as “no foreign policy expert,” Berenberg’s chief economist Holger Schmieding said he expected him to “continue Merkel’s foreign policy.”
“Laschet stands here for continuity with the Merkel government,” McAllister said. “Our American partners can already prepare for this.”
Laschet’s office was not immediately available for comment.