Vince,

I would like to give you a different perspective.

I have over the last 3 or 4 months been exchanging mails with someone in Germany. While we have never met in person we have developed a semi working relationship. We tend to disagree more often than not. I am sure I frustrate him just as he frustrates me at time.

One of the things neither of us can determine looking at the sources in our respective nations, which were available to us was the purpose of this trip. We have concluded there is no real purpose other than to build personal rapport between our respective elected leaders.

My position on this as the POTUS has already been to Germany 3 times there are other places he should go that would help and be more beneficial to the US. He has not been to Australia, a nation that is providing support not only in Afghanistan but Iraq and will do so with DPRK. He has not been to Japan, a nation who seems to be preparing to step up too greater burden sharing for security in Asia, as well as helping in Iraq. He has not been to Brazil a leading nation in South American, a nation which is a leader of the so called underdeveloped nation as it pertains to the on again off again free trade agreement the world is trying to move forward.

I do not think the POTUS is under any illusions about what Germany will or will not do. Your foreign policy such as it is has not changed since Gerhard was your leader. Equally as much as you might think the position of the US and that of the POTUS have in some way changed, they have not.

The US has very different national interests and very different strategic views than Germany. Where those interests and views overlap then one can expect both cooperation and burden sharing. The US is seeing that with Japan as Japan recognizes the near term threat DPRK represents to them.

Just this evening I read a headline about a split between major allies over Israel. Reading the article it reference such nations as france, Spain and Italy. I for one do not consider these nations to be major allies of the US based on the actions of their respective governments. They may however consider themselves to be major allies of the US. Trust me there is a huge difference in those two respective perceptions. Interesting the criticism leveled at Israel by the french was more harsh than some of the Arabs governments in the ME.

What was interesting was no mention of Australia or Canada whose positions closely reflect the position of the US. The article reported the UK position was much closer to the US than to these quote major allies unquote. I for one and I believe this is shared by most Americans, the UK is a major US ally.

Germany BTW fell somewhere in between.

The chasm of the Middle East still beckons. At some point Germany will have to decide where she stands be it on Israel and/or Iran. She will have to decide if she will sit idly by while another democratic nation is being destroyed or if she will join the fight. She will have to decide if the threat of Iranian missiles is more acceptable than it is to do something to eliminate that threat.

The choices Germany makes and the actions taken will reflect German interests as well as the values of the German people.

So your expression that Germany will give the US what is needed and no more is not true. Germany will do what Germany thinks is right for her.