Germany used to be a beacon of stability, but now the prevailing view is that the country can no longer get anything right. Sitting on its laurels for too long left the country ill-prepared for today’s world, and the failure of the ruling "traffic-light coalition" to take decisive action has only made its problems worse.
BERLIN – There was a time when, in the eyes of many, Germany could do no wrong: the economy was strong, unemployment was low, and its strategy of fiscal consolidation was successful. A broad political consensus provided stability, and German society was not beset by deep divisions. As former Chancellor Angela Merkel’s 2017 campaign slogan put it, Germany was “a country in which we live well and happily.”
BERLIN – There was a time when, in the eyes of many, Germany could do no wrong: the economy was strong, unemployment was low, and its strategy of fiscal consolidation was successful. A broad political consensus provided stability, and German society was not beset by deep divisions. As former Chancellor Angela Merkel’s 2017 campaign slogan put it, Germany was “a country in which we live well and happily.”