During his recent trip to the US, german foreign minister Steinmeier used the occasion to talk for a few minutes with Barack Obama. Spiegel writes that he would have liked to meet with him personaly, but Obamas schedule didn't allow it so they spoke on the phone. Let me summarize his impression with a few quotes fromt he article, which can be found here:
http://www.spiegel.de/...
The conversation between the two is briefly described.
The American may be deep in the midst of a campaign, but members of Steinmeier's entourage told SPIEGEL that Obama's foreign policy questions were very engaged, and he peppered his conversation with questions about the German foreign minister's views on Russia, Iran and Afghanistan. The conversation lasted about 15 minutes and was very focused. Obama's rhetorical "cruising altitude," was apparently quite high, an advisor to Steinmeier said. At the end of the conversation, the Democratic presidential candidate promised to come to Germany as soon as possible.
Especially the last part is quite nice for me as german, but the most important thing to me is that Steinmeier was so impressed by Obama that the next day during a speech at Harvard University he chanted:
"Yes we can..."
Now this is interesting to me (and not just to me, but also the author of the article) since Steinmeier normaly is as unemotional as it gets. Getting him to use it in this way is telling about how impressed he must have been with Barack, using it in context of a renewal of the transatlantic relationship only adds a layer to what he is saying for it is as close as it gets to an endorsement a german official can give.
About McCain the author has to say.
Obama's Republican contender John McCain (more...) is viewed with greater skepticism in Berlin, where the 71-year-old Vietnam veteran is considered by many to be a Cold War relic. McCain, for example, announced that he wanted to kick Russia out of the G-8 and instead found a "League of Democracies" that, in emergencies, could also circumvent the United Nations around the world. Those aren't the kind of words that get a warm welcome in Germany.
McCain is not an unknown quantity in Germany, either. As a dyed in the wool trans-Atlanticist, he regularly participates in the annual Munich Security Conference. The senator has a reputation there for his sharp attacks against German politicians -- his fits of rage are feared and his political positions are known because of the numerous debates he has taken part in.
The rest of the article tries to balance that positive impression of Obama with quoting someone who mentioned that Obama regularly denies personal meetings with visiting german officials, but my question would be when were these requests made. I can absolutely understand that during this hard contested primary he had other things to worry about, since to me it is most likely that the interest to meet with him sharply increased right then.
The article closes with this:
"The Germans' hopes are almost excessive," says government coordinator Voigt. "Some trans-Atlantic problems won't simply disappear because Obama is president." Obama, too, he said, would be willing to deploy troops without first getting permission from the United Nations.
"Disappointment with Obama is a foregone conclusion," added the German Marshall Fund's Stelzenmüller.
While this may be the case I rather take my bet with someone who I deeply admire for the great campaign he ran, than someone who represents a Bush third term. It is my impression that an Obama presidency will change and improve not just the US, but also transatlantic relationship and americas general perception in the world.
Edit: Damn, I always seem to botcher my Polls * cries *
Update: I just want to add a link for a summary on the Steinmeier US visit.
http://www.germany.info/...