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Angela Merkel’s Legacy for Germany & the European Union
As the longest-serving democratically elected leader in the EU, Merkel made her mark on EU politics over the 16 years as Germany’s Chancellor.
In that time, Merkel participated in more than 100 EU summits, with some even describing her as “the only grown-up in the room” in many of them.
She was a staple of EU stability for some time, even if she introduced policies that might have turned out ineffective, such as her open-door policy toward asylum seekers from Syria in 2015. From the many crises Merkel had to tackle, like the euro crisis, the mentioned refugee crisis, or Brexit, she was able to positively contribute to lesser and greater extents.
That legacy has been dampened by the energy prospects of the EU following her departure and Putin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Let’s be honest, if Merkel would have invested in nuclear energy, that would mean that Germany wouldn’t have to turn to coal in the coming months and years as an alternative to Russian energy.
With emission targets already criticized by green parties and environmentalists, this prospect is not as attractive as it might be for those who think solely in short-term election cycles.
