While Germans were asking how it was possible that about 100,000 people in Berlin were left without electricity and heating for several days after an attack on the power supply, Chancellor Friedrich Merz had his hands full with international crises.

Merz has been under pressure following the US intervention in Venezuela. His reaction to the capture of former Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro by the US military, was somewhat restrained and vague. The German chancellor described it as a "complex situation," also from a legal perspective, which the German government would now carefully examine.

That was all.

The words "breach of international law" did not pass the lips of the chancellor or his spokespeople. He left that to opposition politicians and academics.

For Merz, Ukraine is the firm focus

Most observers were certain that the German government and the chancellor himself were so cautious on the issue of Venezuela in order to achieve the fairest possible peace agreement in Ukraine, including security guarantees from the West, which are difficult without the US.

DW chief correspondent Michaela Küfner highlighted the statement made by Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier after the US action in Venezuela: "In his apolitical role, the Federal President can afford to speak of an international den of thieves with regard to Venezuela. But Merz must ensure that Germany, that Europe, still has a voice at all in the realpolitik arena." That balancing act, she said, is perhaps the central challenge of his chancellorship.

At a conference on Ukraine in Paris this week, Merz signaled that German soldiers could at least indirectly participate in a security concept for Ukraine (after a ceasefire): for example, by supporting NATO contingents in Poland.

At the meeting, France and the UK announced that they would also take part with soldiers in Ukraine itself. Against this backdrop, it seemed that Merz did not want to further anger the US president. 

"Germany will keep contributing politically, financially and militarily. This could, for example, include deploying forces to Ukraine on neighboring NATO territory after a ceasefire," Merz said at the press conference in Paris, adding that once a US-backed monitoring force is agreed, the German government and parliament "will decide on the nature and extent of a German contribution."

For now, Berlin was "not ruling anything out," the chancellor concluded.

Greenland and the possible end of NATO

US President Donald Trump, meanwhile, has renewed his threat to make Greenland part of the US. Greenland belongs to Denmark, but has wide-ranging autonomy. As Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen pointed out, one NATO country attacking another would spell the end of the defense alliance.

Seven EU countries, including Germany, issued a statement on Tuesday saying: "It is solely up to Denmark and Greenland to decide on matters concerning Denmark and Greenland." However, leading US politicians see things very differently.

A high-profile personnel change

And then Merz surprised everyone with his decision to part ways with his office manager in the Chancellery — after only eight months in office.

The chancellor dismissed his office manager, Jacob Schrot, and replaced him with Philipp Birkenmaier, the former federal manager of his conservative CDU party.

DW chief correspondent Michaela Küfner said this revealed the depth of the problems besetting Merz. "The change in Merz's office from the loyal political scientist Jacob Schrot to the economic expert and experienced party official Philipp Birkenmaier addresses problems that Merz was becoming increasingly aware of, mainly that of poor communication from the chancellor's office."

Merz is also seeking more economic expertise. With Birkenmaier, Merz wants to signal a new beginning on both fronts.

It is the office manager's job to separate the important from the less important tasks and prioritize for the chancellor.

Many observers believe that, with all his foreign policy activities, Merz lost sight of domestic policy issues. Merz emphasized this in his New Year's speech that he wants to provide more support for the faltering German economy.

Even though Merz has a strong presence in many spheres, dissatisfaction with his cabinet's work is running high less than a year after it took office. In the latest ARD Deutschlandtrend poll, only 24% of respondents said they were satisfied with Friedrich Merz's work.

This article was originally written in German.

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