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Obama hopes to look presidential when he speaks in Berlin
Obama will speak at Berlin's Victory Column
Obama is expected to draw a crowd in BerlinBarack Obama seems set to speak next to Berlin's famous Victory Column when he visits next week.The speech is expected to draw thousands and has put Obama's view on trade in the spotlight.In what is viewed as a compromise, Obama, the presumptive US Democratic presidential candidate, will not speak directly at the Brandenburg Gate as originally proposed.Instead, Obama will speak next to a 67-meter column topped with the golden image of the Roman goddess Victory. The Brandenburg Gate, an iconic symbol of Berlin's reunification, will be 2.5 kilometers (1.5 miles) at the opposite end of a tree-lined boulevard.Obama is expected to addresses a large crowd in Berlin on Thursday, July 24. Some have estimated that more than 10,000 Berliners could show up for the event.Berlin's Senate is expected to announce the decision on Friday, according to a report in the Berliner Zeitung newspaper. Unnamed federal and Berlin government officials also confirmed the venue to the DPA news agency.
Symbolic venue
John F. Kennedy visited the Brandenburg Gate in the early 1960s when it was fenced off by East-West political divisions. The gate was also the spot where Ronald Reagan issued his 1987 call to Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev to "tear down this wall."Chancellor Angela Merkel had expressed reservations about Obama using the Brandenburg Gate for what will essentially be a campaign speech.Social Democrat Frank-Walter Steinmeier, likely to be Merkel's opponent in next year's national elections, had supported Obama's right to use the gate as a venue. Obama himself had said that he didn't want the location of his speech to cause controversy.
Meeting with Merkel
The candidate's visit will also include a meeting with Merkel in the chancellery, her spokesman confirmed.Spokesman Ulrich Wilhelm says the meeting is expected to take place on Thursday morning.Berlin will come at the end of a trip Obama is taking that will start with visits to Iraq, Afghanistan, Israel and the Palestinian territories.
Berliners eager to hear Obama
Symbolic venue
John F. Kennedy visited the Brandenburg Gate in the early 1960s when it was fenced off by East-West political divisions. The gate was also the spot where Ronald Reagan issued his 1987 call to Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev to "tear down this wall."Chancellor Angela Merkel had expressed reservations about Obama using the Brandenburg Gate for what will essentially be a campaign speech.Social Democrat Frank-Walter Steinmeier, likely to be Merkel's opponent in next year's national elections, had supported Obama's right to use the gate as a venue. Obama himself had said that he didn't want the location of his speech to cause controversy.
Meeting with Merkel
The candidate's visit will also include a meeting with Merkel in the chancellery, her spokesman confirmed.Spokesman Ulrich Wilhelm says the meeting is expected to take place on Thursday morning.Berlin will come at the end of a trip Obama is taking that will start with visits to Iraq, Afghanistan, Israel and the Palestinian territories.
Berliners eager to hear Obama
Berliners are expected to turn up in large numbers to see him speak. A recent poll shows that 72 percent of Germans would vote for Obama if given the opportunity.With President George W. Bush deeply unpopular in Germany, many are rooting for an Obama win."People here see him almost as a political redeemer after seven years of Bush," political analyst Jan Techau of the German Council on Foreign Relations (DGAP) told DPA news agency, although he warns that sustaining the euphoria will be difficult.
Worries about trade barriers
Worries about trade barriers
Some of Obama's comments about reforming the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) have caused worry among Europeans. Obama recently said that he felt it was "a shame" that Belgium-based brewer, InBev NV would take over the iconic Budweiser label. Europe's top trade commissioner, Peter Mandelson, called on Obama to stop "crowd-pleasing rhetoric" which could be interpreted as anti-trade.Mandelson called on both Obama and likely Republican candidate John McCain toack'nowledge the huge benefits for the American economy and the American people of continued trade growth.'' Mandelson made the comments during an interview with Bloomberg Television on Friday.
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