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Germany’s Merkel vows to work to strengthen EU

German Chancellor and leader of the conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party Angela Merkel thanks delegates after giving a speech during the CDU's party congress on February 26, 2018 in Berlin. (Photo by AFP)

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has vowed to stick to her policy to strengthen the European Union, saying the block is in urgent need of a renewal.

“We need to pick up the pace, we need a new dynamic. If Europe wants to be a global player, then it has to act like a global player,” she said on Monday.

Merkel, who was speaking ahead of vote by her Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party on a new coalition deal, said the partnership with the center-left Social Democrats (SPD) would not allow increasing taxes or new public debt.

“So we will stick to the clear line of the (conservatives): No new debts, no tax increases and at the same time, record investments in the big future areas,” said Merkel, adding, “Reliability means being sensible with how you treat the money of the citizens.”

The chancellor further called for a restructuring of the ideals of the conservatives under her command, saying that would be needed to restore public trust after heavy losses in the September elections.

She said the German public was clearly concerned about establishment political parties and their way of dealing with issues like globalization and digitalization. She said the CDU would continue to focus on ideals like economic conservatism and individual liberties to better appeal to the voters.

“It is our continuing responsibility as a party to give answers to these questions,” Merkel said, adding, “We need orientation for our country, orientation for our party.”

Merkel’s attempts to secure a fourth successive term in office bore fruit earlier this month when she reached an agreement with the SPD on forming a so-called grand coalition. The deal is expected to gain the approval of CDU members later on Monday while SPD members should also ratify it before the new government can take office.


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