Stephen Diver: Mummy Merkel is here

Angela Merkel is undoubtedly the most dominant political figure in the European Union. Photo / AP

Opinion

MFAT is having a purple patch. Last month we secured a rotating non-permanent membership of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) and this month we receive onto our shores both the Chinese premier, Xi JinPing, the Canadian Premier, Stephen Harper and now the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, undoubtedly the most dominant political figure in the European Union.

Merkel has been in power for 9 years, and has come to be admired by the German electorate as their Mutti (Mummy), safeguarding their currency, keeping the squabbling children in EU together, paying for some (but as little as possible) of the misdeeds of the poorer members, and keeping the German manufacturing motor humming along.

She has crisis-managed the agreed closure of Germany's nuclear power plants following Fukushima, attempted to bring Putin to reason over the Ukraine, showed spine against the US in expelling the head of the CIA in Berlin and reached out to the left with the introduction of a minimum wage. But perhaps it is Merkel's style rather than any grand initiative that is proving to be most influential.

She is, in some respects, the anti-politician. Coming from an academic, scientific background, she does not radiate a flashy, charismatic character that might either inspire or repel. Neither is Merkel known for moving rhetoric or hard-knuckled reforms. Rather she is acknowledged as setting a steady course and then tacking incrementally to that objective making temporary alliances with whatever party can assist towards the goal.

The German high-brow press daubs its 20-somethings as ''Generation Merkel", noting the genuine respect today's Germany's youth have for a politician that seeks to build consensus and then move that consensus, rather than a tub-thumping vilification of the political opposition.

Germans feel "looked after" in a way that a Mum might sort things out, but not like a nanny who will tell you what to do. Merkel has twice led grand-coalition governments, the equivalent of a National-Labour coalition, and does so today. This is something still unimaginable here, where the large parties would still rather dance with the wooly political fringe than entertain a government built on the overlapping intentions of the strongest parties.

Mutti Merkel being here matters. It is both a reflection and consolidation of the stature New Zealand has gained in the international community with its successful bid for the UNSC.

In order that we undertake our duties responsibly, we will need to have well-founded and carefully weighed judgments on matters as diverse as Eastern Ukraine, Ebola, nuclear talks with Iran, terrorism in the Horn of Africa, ISIS and its impact on Syria, Iraq and Israel.

Germany is on the front line or has a major hand in all of these issues. Our diplomatic engagement with Germany will help us build our independent position on some of these intractable problems, acknowledging that we do not and will not always have an automatic default setting to follow the US, undoubtedly still our most important ally.

Secondly, and more soberly, New Zealand needs to prepare itself for the evermore likely and unwelcome exit of the United Kingdom from the EU. PM Cameron's vein-bursting language towards the EU on immigration, EU funding payments, or the appointment of EU President Juncker, is evidence that the EU dialogue in the UK is reaching a point of no return - someone seems to have swapped Cameron's speech notes with the UK Independence Party's.

If the UK really does commit political and economic harikari by sailing off into a 19th century nostalgia of 'splendid isolation', New Zealand will need to be well-anchored in its relationships with the EU, most obviously with Germany as its centre.

Finally, Merkel's visit underlines the robust nature of bi-lateral trade, whereby Germany is NZ's sixth most important trading partner and sends us 70,000 tourists each year. Perhaps, more interesting is the recent surge of German investment in our agricultural technology through such company acquisitions as FIL and Milfos by GEA, a listed German food technology company, which is equally Fonterra's go-to company when it builds large, sophisticated milk powder separators and driers.

Last year, DEKRA, also a German powerhouse, as the world's largest tester of vehicles purchased 60% of VTNZ. The managements of both companies regard their New Zealand operations as their competence centers for Asia-Pacific. It is these sorts of technology based investments that we need to foster. Look out for more to come.

Stephen Diver is MD of SDR Ltd and a Board Member of the NZ German Business Association.