German Chancellor Angela Merkel Wednesday told US president-elect Donald Trump that any "close cooperation" between the two countries must be based on shared democratic values, and reminded him of the global responsibility he carries. "Germany and America share the values of democracy, freedom, respect for the rule of law and human dignity, regardless of origin, skin colour, religion, gender, sexual orientation or political belief," said Merkel.
"On the basis of these values, I offer close cooperation to the future president of the United States of America, Donald Trump," she said to the election winner whose campaign was littered with sexist and anti-migrant slurs. Merkel also pointed to the global challenges Trump must tackle, saying that "whoever rules this country, with its tremendous economic might, military power and cultural impact, carries a responsibility that can be felt almost anywhere on Earth". She stressed that "the partnership with the USA is and will remain the foundation of German foreign policy so that we can meet the great challenges of our times".
These included, she said, "the pursuit of economic and social prosperity, the struggle for forward-looking climate policy, the war on terrorism, poverty, hunger and disease, the pursuit of peace and freedom, in Germany, Europe and the world". On the campaign trail, Trump has accused Merkel of "ruining Germany" with her open-door policy to refugees but later also called her "a really great world leader".
Despite the past slights - and obvious policy differences on climate change, free trade and a host of other issues - Merkel stressed that, for Germany, there is "no country outside the European Union with which we have deeper ties than with the United States".
Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier warned Wednesday that US foreign policy would become more unpredictable after Trump was elected president, making things "more difficult". "In other words, and I will not dress it up, nothing will become easier, many things will become more difficult," said Steinmeier, who had during the US campaign compared Trump to a "hate preacher" and also described the prospect of him taking the White House as "frightening".