MUNICH: German Chancellor Angela Merkel appears to have convinced the toughest audience in her political camp that Greece should be given the benefit of the doubt, and possibly more time to meet its painful savings targets.
Venturing south to talk to her Bavarian conservative allies can be like a trip into the lion's den for Merkel. The Christian Social Union's (CSU) approach to the euro zone crisis is often one of bruising euro-scepticism.
But at the CSU's annual congress in Munich on Friday and Saturday, the Bavarians joked they were behaving like "purring kittens" instead, sounding a more conciliatory tone towards twice bailed-out Greece than as recently as a month ago.
"If we turned a blind eye when Greece adopted the euro, it's now time to turn another blind eye," said Hannelore Gabor, mayor of Garching, a town of 16,000 inhabitants north of Munich.
"The costs would be much higher if we didn't," said the local politician, sporting a traditional Bavarian dirndl dress.
The CSU had played hardball on Greece for months, posing a threat to Merkel who needed to send a single, strong message abroad and to financial markets to get the crisis under control.
Bavarian Finance Minister Markus Soeder had called for Greece to leave the euro.
Party general secretary Alexander Dobrindt even urged Athens to start paying half of pensions and state salaries in drachmas to ease a gradual exit.
But party members, clad in traditional outfits, eating pretzels and swigging beer, gave Merkel an enthusiastic welcome this weekend, greeting her entrance with music and applause.
Merkel largely skated around the subject of Greece in Munich, opting to attack the opposition Social Democrats instead.
But she won a minute-long ovation when she said the Greek protesters who took to the streets during her visit to Athens had, by exercising their right to demonstrate, displayed the freedoms and virtues that made Europe great.
"I waited for 34 years to protest. Who am I to complain about people protesting?" said Merkel, alluding to her origins in the former Communist East Germany.
Bavarians consider themselves passionate Europeans and readily admit they have benefited hugely from Europe, with 70 per cent of their affluent state's goods and services exported to Europe.
But they are also proud of their balanced budget and have little time for those who overspend.
indiatimes.com
Venturing south to talk to her Bavarian conservative allies can be like a trip into the lion's den for Merkel. The Christian Social Union's (CSU) approach to the euro zone crisis is often one of bruising euro-scepticism.
But at the CSU's annual congress in Munich on Friday and Saturday, the Bavarians joked they were behaving like "purring kittens" instead, sounding a more conciliatory tone towards twice bailed-out Greece than as recently as a month ago.
"If we turned a blind eye when Greece adopted the euro, it's now time to turn another blind eye," said Hannelore Gabor, mayor of Garching, a town of 16,000 inhabitants north of Munich.
"The costs would be much higher if we didn't," said the local politician, sporting a traditional Bavarian dirndl dress.
The CSU had played hardball on Greece for months, posing a threat to Merkel who needed to send a single, strong message abroad and to financial markets to get the crisis under control.
Bavarian Finance Minister Markus Soeder had called for Greece to leave the euro.
Party general secretary Alexander Dobrindt even urged Athens to start paying half of pensions and state salaries in drachmas to ease a gradual exit.
But party members, clad in traditional outfits, eating pretzels and swigging beer, gave Merkel an enthusiastic welcome this weekend, greeting her entrance with music and applause.
Merkel largely skated around the subject of Greece in Munich, opting to attack the opposition Social Democrats instead.
But she won a minute-long ovation when she said the Greek protesters who took to the streets during her visit to Athens had, by exercising their right to demonstrate, displayed the freedoms and virtues that made Europe great.
"I waited for 34 years to protest. Who am I to complain about people protesting?" said Merkel, alluding to her origins in the former Communist East Germany.
Bavarians consider themselves passionate Europeans and readily admit they have benefited hugely from Europe, with 70 per cent of their affluent state's goods and services exported to Europe.
But they are also proud of their balanced budget and have little time for those who overspend.
indiatimes.com
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