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Published on November 1, 2007

That's why when she delivered a speech at last Friday's conference on Europe, Germany and Asia organised by her CDU/CSU Parliamentary Group at the Bundestag, it was to me a clear sign that the popular German leader had finally rediscovered Asia after two years in office.

Taken together with Asean secretary-general-designate Surin Pitsuwan's "East and West, The Twain Must Meet" presentation at the same meeting, the German leader's new approach means a new kind of Asian-European bond could be in the making - if concrete action follows political posturing.

"Asia has become a strategic challenge and an opportunity for us," said the chancellor, who flew to India for an official visit after incurring Beijing's wrath by receiving the Dalai Lama in the Chancellery the previous week.

She had, in late August, paid official visits to China and Japan, where she held talks about climate change with Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, who spoke lyrically about "blue skies and green mountains" but refused to budge on Beijing' s policy of "joint but different responsibility".

One of the strategy papers drawn up by her party's think-tank declared: "Germany urgently needs a comprehensive Asia strategy. Germany is highly regarded in Asia and its reputation is not burdened by a colonial past. A German strategy on Asia can only be successful in a European framework and if it is closely coordinated with the US and our partners in Asia."

Surin, speaking immediately after the German leader, said: "We need each other more than ever. East and West need to meet more often. It is no longer true as Rudyard Kipling once mused, that East is East, and West is West, and never the twain shall meet." Instead he called upon Germany to enhance the bond, declaring, "East and West: The twain must meet."

The basic reason for the new Asia awareness here certainly isn't all altruism. Germany cannot afford to miss out on the Asian economic boom, especially in the wake of expected economic stagnation in the western world. As a government MP closely involved in promoting the new Asia strategy told me: "Asia is without a doubt the most dynamic region in the world. Asia is home to half the world's population. The world's most populous countries, China and India, are in Asia. And most Germans may not realise that the largest Islamic country, Indonesia, and the largest democracy, India, are also in Asia."

Merkel, since being elected federal chancellor in the German Bundestag two years ago and presiding over a "grand coalition", has shown herself to be innovative and unconventional in her foreign policy approaches. She mended relations with Washington but earned respect for taking US President George W Bush to task over such sensitive issues as climate change and the Guantanamo Bay detention facility.

A German political journalist told me: "Merkel has become popular because nobody had had high expectations of her performance from the very start. So, whatever she does seems a pleasant surprise. When she took on Bush, the German people cheered her on. And when she lectured Vladimir Putin in fluent Russian about the dangers of his authoritarian tendencies, she scored high marks. And when she criticised Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's denial of the Holocaust, you could hear loud applause. This woman has surprised us with her courage and defiance."

That's probably why her decision to receive the Dalai Lama despite China's strong negative reaction has bolstered her position in domestic politics.

A veteran political observer here ventured this explanation: "Merkel wants to send a clear message to Beijing that China doesn't tell her whom she can meet or not meet. She also wants to separate politics from religion. And, of course, she knows that the Dalai Lama is a very popular spiritual figure in Germany."

The German chancellor's pursuit of a new, more comprehensive policy towards Asia is therefore what one of her assistants described as a "multi-layered strategy" that embraces not only the basic elements of trade, development and security, but also what Surin called the "human infrastructure" for future joint endeavours - through which Germany can exert the soft influence of a vibrant democratic society and the stamp of excellence that has always been associated with Germany.

Perhaps it's this new soft side of the well-known German strength that marks Angela Merkel's style.

When I asked an experienced German political correspondent covering parliamentary affairs whether Merkel was happy with being likened to Margaret Thatcher, his response was: "Publicly, she says she isn't all that delighted by that Iron Lady comparison. Privately, though, she thinks she has much more personal charm than Thatcher."

Suthichai Yoon

The Nation

BERLIN

yoon@nationgroup.com