Reuters ;
November 19. Former US President Barack Obama recently published a memoir “The Promised Land”. In this book, he mentioned German Chancellor Merkel, who had dealt with during his tenure, and said that the other party had an interest in him at the beginning. Suspected, later became more and more easy-going. In addition, he also criticized the policies adopted by Germany after the financial crisis in Greece.
According to a report by “Deutsche Welle” on the 17th, Obama mentioned in the book that Merkel was initially skeptical of him, which he believed might be related to his strong speech and “exaggerated remarks.” However, Obama stated that he did not dislike this suspicion, and believed that “it may be a healthy attitude for German leaders to be disgusted with possible incitement.”
The former president of the United States said that over the years, he found Merkel more and more easy-going, and called her reliable, honest, rigorous and friendly. However, he also criticized Germany’s policy during Greece’s difficult debt period after the financial crisis. Merkel and the German finance minister at the time insisted on austerity policies and reduced public borrowing as the answer to almost all economic difficulties. In addition, Obama also criticized the former French President Nicolas Sarkozy. He believed that unlike the German leader, Nicolas Sarkozy seemed too chaotic to formulate a rigorous plan for economic reforms. He added that Sarkozy’s approach lacked “ideological consistency.” “.
German media pointed out that before the book was published, Obama praised Merkel in an interview with German RTL television: “I admire Merkel very much. She has always been an outstanding political leader. Not only for Germany, This is also true for Europe and the world.”
