‘Bye, bye, Merkozy': Will it be Merkollande?

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Published time: May 07, 2012 17:02
Edited time: May 08, 2012 01:17

Francois Hollande (AFP Photo / Miguel Medina)

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EU, Economy, Europe, Finance, Kevin Owen, Merkel, Politics

Germany has ruled out any possibility of renegotiating the EU's fiscal pact, which is seen by the bloc as a defense against default. Persuading Berlin and the union otherwise is now a major challenge for Hollande as it was his main election promise.

In his victory speech on Sunday, Francois Hollande promised his people he would re-open talks so that the pact, according to which the 17 eurozone members agreed on tough measures to slash their deficits, focuses on growth rather than simply imposing deficit-cutting austerity rules.

“This is the mission that is now mine: to give the European project a dimension of growth, employment, prosperity – in short, a future,” he said. “This is what I will say as soon as possible to our European partners and first of all to Germany.”

Berlin has opposed the idea.

"I believe the fiscal pact is correct and secondly I think that we can't simply re-open for discussion everything we have already agreed after an election in a small or big country," Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Monday, commenting on Francois Hollande’s intentions at a news conference.

She pointed out that the fiscal pact has been signed by 25 EU countries.

However, Merkel said that they will meet the newly-elected French leader “with open arms” when he visits Germany after his inauguration on May 15. She added that Franco-German cooperation is essential for Europe and “we all want Europe to succeed.”

“We are in the middle of a debate to which France, of course, under its new president will bring its own emphasis. But we are talking about two sides of the same coin – progress is only achievable via solid finances plus growth," Merkel said.

Europe’s debt crisis and the changes in France’s economy are the main issues on Hollande’s agenda.

A socialist, who claimed his election is a signal of hope for Europe that "austerity does not have to be inevitable," has vowed to slow the pace of Sarkozy's public spending cuts. He has also promised to reverse austerity measures, lower the pension age and reduce wealth inequality.

“This is part of the reason why he did, in the end, get a majority, be it a slim majority,” former Belgian MP and international consultant Lode Vanoost told RT.

But even though Hollande might be able to deliver all the promises he made, Vanoost says it is uncertain what reaction will follow from other EU members and especially from Germany.

“The thing is, in the short run he can certainly deliver these issues for a very simple reason – the financial consequences of policies always follow a year after you take them. The thing is how other European countries will react to it,” Vanoost said. “Will they go in the same way, or will they counter-react? And a lot will depend on how Germany will react to these issues.”

Political analyst Pepe Escobar says Hollande’s intentions of “re-negotiation of financial arrangement in the world” means “the end of the US dollar as the reserve currency.” This, he says, will be point “where Obama and Hollande will clash head on, in spite of Obama’s sympathies for Hollande, for the left in France and for the left in Europe in general.”

“So, ‘Bye, Bye, Merkozy, now it is Merkollande.’ Hollande on the internal front in Europe will try to convince Merkel that this austerity business is drowning Europe. And on the external front he’ll coordinate with BRICS and say: ‘Look, another way to change the whole system is to try to change the financial system as it works.’ And that will mean a basket of currencies as a reserve currency in the world. So, expect major fireworks inside Europe and across the world as well,” Escobar told RT.

Watch RT's interview with Pepe Escobar

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Comments (23)

aleks mici 08.05.2012 22:32

DISASTER ECONOMICS. teddyformusic:
Thanks you said the truth, partially but you can not ne exhaustive.
The German tribe as well known the "natural born killers “are as usual the same perfect "hard working" willingly executioners and servants of Rothschild’s , as well known doing the job for the Zionists.
Now it is the time of financial holocaust against people of Europe. Who is the master mechanics of such holocausts : the German tribe .
Sorry I've forget Holland!
No problems as socialist he will do as all socialists have done always: they sucked up all our blood ,will give that to their masters ( Bank and Banksters ) and then they will get a prefect job as the Dutch former pime minister Wim Kok to be the perfect parasite . Socialists are the perfect parasits!

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Expatriate 08.05.2012 21:57

EU's fiscal pact addresses default through generating income in indiscriminate targeting of people. That raises questions of unfairness because a lot of people are denied basic necessities and the result is ugly. No government cutback in austerity programs should start without a study of who has profited from the economic mess, how did the previous bailouts disappear with no effect, how should taxes be changed to produce proportional effects on individual purchasing powers, and….The present haphazard austerity programs generates some money to pay towards debts while destroys segments of the economy that requires borrowing more money to fix. It’s a win-win for the bankers and only a ruthless banker government can endorse it.

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teddyformusic 08.05.2012 15:22

westpreuße wrote in #20
anon wrote in #15
You do realize that Germany is successfully doing what Hitler could not, WIN. That is wrong. In my view Germany has already lost long ago. They've lost to globalism which now perpetuates itself using Germany as a host, sucking it dry. Anybody who thinks that this Eurozone disaster is actually beneficial to Germany and its people, or to any European people for that matter, is a little bit mislead I think.
If anything the Eurozone policies actually slow down the German economy, weakening it. The reason Germany is less badly affected by the economical crisis than many other countries is not because it profits from the Eurozone. It is better off despite the Eurozone, because Germany is traditionally an economical powerhouse with a population that is extremely dedicated to their work.Also, comparing Hitler to any of these Eurocrats of today doesn't do the man justice. I mean, at least the guy had the German people's interests at heart back then and not the bank's.
===== =======

I actually agree with Westpreusse's assessment.,-- EXCEPT for the remark about the German people's being "extremely dedicated to their work" -- which is not necessarily true ONLY FOR germans. dedication to our work -- when it is particularly FULFILLING to one'self but even if not -- is a COMMON human character. who can say a german is more "dedicated to work" than , for example, a FARMER in india? or a fisherman in the philippines (where I come from where they are very welcoming of germans actually)...
but that's just a MINOR difference of opinion that I have.
the main point is , imo, correctly made by Westpreusse. Germany -- or more precisely - the german PEOPLE - who are being forced by Merkel's obedience to Corporate/Finance Masters (which is the AMERICAN specialty) to sacrifice themselves, little by little, and then THROUGH germany's "power" - then FORCES citizens of OTHER countries to undergo the same sacrifice - is the REAL story here.
in that sense, Westpreusse is correct.
and just for the record -- i happen to be a great admirer of german culture since I can't avoid it because I am a classical musician, and once you've immersed in JS Bach...there is "no going back". hehe...
Viel Spass, if I remember my basic german correctly, hehe.

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