Inside The Soul Of Angela Merkel

Inside The Soul Of Angela Merkel
German Chancellor Angela Merkel prepares to address both Houses of Parliament in the Royal Gallery of the Palace of Westminster on February 27, 2014 in London. German Chancellor Angela Merkel urged Britain Thursday to stay in the EU but played down David Cameron's hopes that her visit to London would bring major reforms. The British premier rolled out the red carpet in his bid to woo fellow conservative Merkel, who gave a speech to both houses of parliament and was due to have tea with the queen. AFP PHOTO/Oli Scarff/POOL (Photo credit should read OLI SCARFF/AFP/Getty Images)
German Chancellor Angela Merkel prepares to address both Houses of Parliament in the Royal Gallery of the Palace of Westminster on February 27, 2014 in London. German Chancellor Angela Merkel urged Britain Thursday to stay in the EU but played down David Cameron's hopes that her visit to London would bring major reforms. The British premier rolled out the red carpet in his bid to woo fellow conservative Merkel, who gave a speech to both houses of parliament and was due to have tea with the queen. AFP PHOTO/Oli Scarff/POOL (Photo credit should read OLI SCARFF/AFP/Getty Images)

Angela Merkel has just embarked on a third term as Chancellor of Germany - the most robust economy in the developed world and the country with the most traumatic political history on the planet. She's the de facto leader of the EU, which had a collective GDP of nearly 16 trillion US dollars in 2012, slightly larger than that of the USA itself. She is the final arbiter of the fates of Greece, Portugal and Spain. The fragile debt position of Ireland, Slovenia and Cyprus means that the most consequential decisions about their future may well be made by her. No democratic leader in Europe has ever had such power.

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