Foreign countries on the final spurt of the election campaign: "The world won't miss Merkel" - and more outside views on the Bundestag election

Florian Schillat 22 hrs ago | Sentimental, serene, baffled, bored: The end of Merkel's term in office and the struggle for her successor is also being followed closely abroad - with thoroughly mixed feelings. Political caesura and turning point: German Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) is stepping down after 16 years in office. Who will take over, who will do it, with whom, and what will happen next? Shortly before the Bundestag elections, just as many questions and uncertainties are blowing through the German press as possible answers and scenarios that try to satisfy voters' need for planning and forecasts - because, and this currently seems to be the only reliable reality, after 16 years it's over: Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) is stepping down. A political caesura and a turning point. This Sunday's election is therefore being watched with corresponding attention abroad. Observers are taking stock of the situation, looking at the candidates and their election campaigns, and gazing into a crystal ball. Their verdict varies, but they almost always come to the same conclusion: Germany is facing a historic decision of presumably international significance. A look at the bigger picture reveals the high esteem in which the chancellor is held abroad, the astonishment at the way in which her succession is being fought over, and a mixture of hope and concern about what will follow from the election. Almost sentimental "What does life after Merkel look like?" asks U.S. broadcaster CNN, for example, perplexed by the "symbol of stability in Europe," namely Angela Merkel. For the first time "in a generation," citizens must decide what Germany will look like after Merkel - she is no longer up for election - and who will continue the "impressive legacy of the most successful female head of state" who has defied all manner of crises. Merkel's longevity led to her becoming Europe's de facto leader, and it's unclear whether her successor will take on the same role During her tenure, she has dealt with five British and seven Italian prime ministers, four French and American presidents each, he said. A "remarkably eventful period in power," CNN sums up, which Merkel's "steadfast presence" has earned her an international reputation for "stability and level-headedness." Accordingly, the fallout is high: Merkel's political "longevity" has made her the de facto leader of Europe, and it is unclear whether her successor will assume a similar role. With "unwavering determination," she had tried to hold the community of nations together and cultivate relations with the United States or China. Will her successor succeed in doing the same? No trace of melancholy The melancholy that CNN is hinting at is virtually countered by the U.S. magazine "The Atlantic," which calmly concludes: "The world will not miss Angela Merkel. It is true that the "darkest days of Donald Trump's presidency," which were also marked by international chaos, gave the chancellor a "heroic image" as the "last adult on the world stage. But predictions of what calamity might follow her withdrawal were based on "false premises." During her tenure, Merkel had shown "little ambition" to set the political agenda and had waited for the "great debates of her time until it seemed clear which way the wind was blowing." An "admirable" circumstance in view of her long tenure, judges the paper - and presumably the secret of her success: Merkel often remained in the background, so that voters never had enough reason to be "fed up with her. Most voters seem to agree that it won't make much difference anyway. Even after Merkel leaves office, Germany is likely to be governed "moderately," The Atlantic believes. To be sure, there are major differences, at least on paper, among the contenders to succeed her, he said. "But despite the obvious differences in their ages, biographies and ideological backgrounds, all three are effectively positioning themselves as forces of continuity." The result, he concluded, was an election campaign "that was at once upside-down and strangely boring." Although most voters:inside didn't know who would succeed Merkel, "most seem to agree that it won't make much difference anyway." A mood of optimism in Germany: missing.