M-TH: Merkel's acceptance speech

[Chris Burford]

Angela Merkel's acceptance speech as president of Germany's CDU was 
particularly assured for a woman from East Germany, who was born after the 
foundation of the CDU.

Possibly her period thinking about the alternatives to East German state 
socialism has given her a theoretical base which she can combine with 
skilled manoeuvring as the CDU tries to extricate itself from the era of 
illegal funding under Kohl.

Significant were the the tilt away from centralisation of Europe in 
Brussels and the gesture of solidarity with Austria's People's Party, which 
has gone into coalition with Haider's Freedom Party.

It echoes a sharpening of the rhetoric by the British Conservative Party 
against immigrants.


Chris Burford

London



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