Sunday December 12th 2021
It is better not to underestimate
Baerbock’s premiere is convincing
Annalena Baerbock is already in her first days in office on a large tour through Europe and the G7 countries. For the Green Foreign Minister, things are about to go to extremes. But there are no mistakes, instead Baerbock appears competent and quick-witted.
There is no grace period for Annalena Baerbock. It is the very big crises of this world that the new Foreign Minister is confronted with in her first days in office. Russia and its unpredictable President Vladimir Putin in the Ukraine crisis. The difficult relationship with China. The stalled negotiations with Iran over its nuclear program. Anyone who has observed the 40-year-old since she took office on Wednesday experiences a woman who appears confident in the face of the great challenges, but not arrogant.
Baerbock moves fresh and with a firm step on the smooth international stage. A young woman next to many older men in gray suits with gray hair. It’s an inaugural marathon to Paris, Brussels, Warsaw, Liverpool and then back to Brussels. Her credo everywhere: first listen. Avoid errors. And make your own point in important moments. There are a couple of scenes that make it clear how Baerbock pulls onto the big stage.
Paris: The first visit is to her French colleague Jean-Yves Le Drian. “What could be nicer for a foreign minister than to be in the new office in Paris on the first morning,” Baerbock flattered the 74-year-old. Le Drian calls the relationship between the foreign ministers of France and Germany a “treasure trove of Franco-German relations in the service of Europe”. But when it comes to the advance of the French to declare nuclear power to be “green energy”, Baerbock, the still-Green boss, makes it clear: Not with me.
Two days later, Le Drian again plays a role in a striking scene: For the obligatory family photo at the meeting of the leading Western economies (G7) in the Museum of Liverpool, Baerbock and her US colleague Antony Blinken come down the spiral staircase, deep in conversation. When the photos are taken, she and Le Drian are slowly going up the stairs again. At some point the Frenchman has to take a break, the German also stops. This is what affection looks like, could be the signal.
Kind and clear
Warsaw: At the end of Baerbock’s inaugural visit to difficult neighbor Poland, Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau lists allegations and demands for 20 minutes. The 66-year-old law professor, who has been in office for almost a year, also has a few pieces of advice ready. “Many of my theoretical ideas about my work have been corrected through ongoing practice,” he says. He wishes her luck. “You will need it in the fulfillment of your mission, but also in Polish-German relations.”
Baerbock follows Rau’s tirade closely. She looks sideways at her colleague for a long time. Not a trace of disgruntlement can be seen, rather a bit of astonishment. Since the man was so courteous in conversation behind closed doors before, she might think. Then the minister counters tightly and quickly. Thank you for the hospitality “and above all for the kind and loving greetings and clever tips” and the congratulations for the “diplomatic life that lies ahead of me, but also for both of us, because we are now very, completely will often move together in Europe, “says Baerbock zu Rau. You shouldn’t underestimate your negotiating partners.
Liverpool: At the meeting with your G7 colleagues, Baerbock will be in full swing at the weekend. Of course, the Federal Foreign Office, of which she is the first female minister, has excellent experts. The new minister is briefed on every topic, some call it “refueling under pressure”. But speaking, presenting, discussing – the newcomer has to do that herself at the negotiating table and in public. In her public appearances on the fringes of the meeting, she appears concentrated, calm, alert. Even if it’s days with very little sleep. The impression is created that a woman is going to work for Germany with a lot of drive and creative drive. In Liverpool, their participation makes the group younger and more feminine: With host Liz Truss and Canadian Melanie Joly, three out of seven bosses in the group are women.
Hard chunks are waiting
Early on Saturday evening, G7 colleagues leave it to Baerbock to present the most important results of the negotiations in public. There is agreement on the central issues of Russia, China and Iran, says the Greens into the camera. That was more than some had expected as a result of the meeting. That could also have been thought of as a leap of faith for the newcomers to the group. Next year Germany will take over the G7 chairmanship as scheduled. Then Baerbock has to lead the meeting. So far it has been a warm-up for feel-good appointments with political partners for Baerbock. The really tough chunks are yet to come. For example, when it has to stand up to the ultra-experienced Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, who has been pursuing foreign policy for about as long as Baerbock has lived – the last 17 years of which as chief diplomat. Or when she speaks to her Chinese colleague. She will hardly get to know him personally in Beijing so quickly – the drastic corona regulations of the Chinese make sure of that.
And then there is the SPD with Chancellor Olaf Scholz. With his inaugural visits to Paris, Brussels and Warsaw, he is always on after her. But last week, the traffic light coalition had already begun to fumble between the SPD and the Greens as to where German foreign policy will be made in the future. In the Chancellery or in the Foreign Ministry? Memories of the times of “cook and waiter” between the SPD Chancellor Gerhard Schröder and the first Green Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer were awakened a little.