Merkel Cautions Europe on Balancing Act in Bipolar World
German Chancellor Angela Merkel has urged the European Union to be smart in balancing security interests raised by Washington with economic opportunities provided by China as Brussels establishes regulations for the next generation wireless network. ”The bigger economic might of the United States of America can of course set certain standards,” she told the World Economic Forum in Davos. “That’s why we as Europeans must decide smartly, how we want to deal with Chinese offers in the age of digitalization.” In the twilight of her political career, Merkel has been preoccupied with the breakdown of multilateralism and the post-World War II order that helped ensure stability and prosperity in Europe. She has sought to balance opposing interests from its traditional U.S. ally on the one hand, and Russia and China on the other. Washington has been pressuring Merkel to ban Chinese Huawei Technologies Co. from Germany’s fifth-generation network and to abandon construction of a g...