One day after her conservative party got hammered in Berlin's local election, Chancellor Angela Merkel took responsibility for the loss. She also said there would be no repeat of "uncontrolled" immigration.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/M. Kappeler
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Merkel accepts responsibility for election defeat
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In her first news conference after her Christian Democratic Union (CDU) recorded its worst-ever showing in a Berlin election, Merkel took partial responsibility for that defeat while again blaming opposition to her refugee policies on communication shortcomings.
"I'm the party chairwoman, and I'm not going to duck responsibility," Merkel told reporters. "If one of the reasons for the CDU's poor showing is that the direction, goal and conviction behind our refugee policy haven't been explained well enough, I'll endeavor to rectify that."
Merkel admitted that some Germans may have objected to her declaration, "We'll get it done," when faced with hundreds of thousands of refugees and said it wasn't meant to imply that it would be easy to deal with the influx. She also said Germany lacked sufficient practice integrating immigrants.
"It can't be done quickly, among other things because we didn't do everything correctly in past years," Merkel said. "We weren't exactly world champions in integration, and we waited too long before we addressed the refugee issue. We have to get better - I do as well."
Merkel said Germany had placed too much faith in agreements to share refugees among European nations.
"For a long time, I, too, relied on the Dublin procedure that seemed to promise to relieve us Germans of the problem - that wasn't good," Merkel said. "If I could, I'd turn back the clock many years in order to better prepare the government for the situation that hit us in the summer of 2015."
No repeat of 2015
Merkel admitted that there were problems in housing refugees, that the process of applying for asylum was too long, and that most of the work of integrating refugees into the labor market still lay ahead. She said that for ethical reasons neither she nor her party could change course and reject refugees, Muslim or non-Muslim.
But she also said she understood frustration with last year's situation, which she blamed on a "humanitarian emergency."
"If people are saying that the situation of uncontrolled, unregistered immigration should not be repeated, then I'll fight for that not to be repeated," said Merkel. "No one wants that situation, and neither do I."
Some 1.1 million migrants and refugees arrived in Germany in 2015. Merkel said that fewer refugees were coming and that more was being done to combat human trafficking.
She once again called upon the EU to reach a common position on refugees. Concluding with an emotional appeal to critics, she expressed belief that Germany would emerge stronger from the refugee crisis.
But with local elections and a national vote looming in the coming year, she will need to start convincing critics well before that.
The many faces of Angela Merkel
Rarely a day goes by without new images of Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel being published. Her official face is often serious, her governing style cautious. But some images show there is more to Merkel.
Image: dapd
The 'Merkel diamond'
Merkel has become known for using the same hand gesture at public appearances and in front of the camera, putting her fingertips together to form what some call the Merkel-rhombus – or in German, the "Merkel-Raute." If she has done so consciously or as a routine gesture out of habit is a question that have contemporary critics and journalists puzzled. Just what is she trying to say with it?
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/Michael Kappeler
A European politician
The German chancellor is known for her commanding and engaged appearance, often appearing quite somber, especially in Europe. Though she has been known to crack a smile at the right time, here, at the recent European leaders summit in Bratislava, she was more composed. To her left is Danish Prime Minister Lars Lokke and to her right, the Prime Minster of Belgium, Charles Michel.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/O. Hoslet
Selfie with the chancellor
Merkel has come into the spotlight for her response to last year's influx of refugees.. Questions about her response to the crisis can be answered when elements of her personal life are considered, as Rinke does in his book. She frequently visits schools and refugee shelters and while doing so, takes time out for selfies, as here in 2015 with Syrian asylum applicant Anas Modamani in Berlin.
Image: Getty Images/S. Gallup
A juggler in the coalition
As chancellor and head of the CDU party, Merkel faces a bit of difficulty in remaining considerate with some of her working partners. She does not respond with the huffiness her SPD party colleague Sigmar Gabriel is known for. Against attacks by the head of CSU Bavaria, the "archetypical Bavarian man," Horst Seehofer, she responds with cool objectivity.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/W. Kumm
Curious about the digital age
For trained physicist Angela Merkel, the world of the internet and digital media is said to be relatively foreign, although her team does now have an Instagram account, which is fed by her official photographer. Still, that didn't stop her from grabbing the ear of Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg at a lunch meeting at the UN in 2015.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
The preacher's daughter
The daughter of a Protestant minister, Merkel's values are said by Rinke to have been shaped by her Christian upbringing. In 2016, she was given a private audience with Pope Francis I at the Vatican, where the two exchanged words on their favorite books.
Image: Reuters/A. Pizzoli
A toast to friendly political relations
Merkel is not known to let it all hang out and, though rare due to her full schedule, celebrations are done in style. In 2013, in honor of the 50th anniversary of the Élysee agreement between Germany and France, Merkel invited the entire parliament to toast the two countries' friendly relations over champagne.
Image: AP
A private chancellor
The chancellor gets only a few free vacation moments each year and even when on holiday, as here in Poland, she is not free from the prying eyes of the public. Her husband, Joachim Sauer, also pictured here, is rarely in the spotlight.
