Germany in Brief

Germans give the U.S. a poor report card

Germans believe France is a more important, more reliable and friendlier partner than the United States, according to a poll in the German daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung published Wednesday. The survey was published as Berlin tries to repair its fractured relations with Washington, which were badly damaged by their dispute over the U.S.-led war on Iraq. The Allensbach polling institute questioned 1,660 people. Asked which was the most important partner, Paris for the sake of European cooperation or Washington for the sake of security, 49 percent said France -- with only 19 percent siding with the U.S. Sixty-two percent of those surveyed said France was a country they could rely on. Only 38 percent thought the same about the U.S. With respect to the leaders of Britain, France and the U.S., the French again came out on top. Some 45 percent had a good opinion of French President Jacques Chirac, who also opposed the war. Only 17 percent thought the same of Prime Minister Tony Blair of Britain, and just one in 10 people had a positive opinion of U.S. President George W. Bush.

Social Democrats hit all-time low

German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder's ruling Social Democrats (SPD) have fallen to their lowest poll ratings in eight years, according to a survey to be published on Thursday in the weekly news magazine Stern. Only 26 percent of the 2,508 people surveyed said they would vote for the SPD party if there were an election now. The main opposition party, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), got a 49-percent approval rate. Schröder and his government are struggling to revive Germany's economy, which is suffering from high unemployment and low growth. The SPD won 38.5 percent in last September's general election, exactly the same percentage as the opposition Christian Union alliance. But the results were enough to keep the SPD in power with its junior coalition partner, the Greens.

European healthcare possible

Europeans can now seek outpatient care in other EU countries without prior approval from their health insurance companies. Insurers must reimburse costs incurred for these treatments, the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg ruled. The court reasoned that doctor's visits in other countries would not destabilize Europe's public health systems. The decision is significant for patients and doctors living in border areas, as well as holidaymakers. Two patients in the Netherlands had sued their insurers for refusing to pay for outpatient treatment in Germany and Belgium, respectively. Health insurance companies do, however, have to give their previous blessing to any inpatient hospital care abroad, the court said.

Germany and Indonesia sign bilateral trade deal

Chancellor Gerhard Schröder and Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri have signed an agreement for a Siemens-led consortium to build an extension to a gas-fired power plant just outside Jakarta. They said there were also more talks about Germany's construction of inter-island ferries. Indonesia is the third leg on the chancellor's whistlestop trip to Asia following Malaysia and Singapore. Germany is an important trading partner and source of investment for Indonesia. Last year, German-Indonesian trade was worth $4.2 billion. Almost 200 German companies are based in Indonesia. The leaders also discussed the U.S.-declared war on terror and issued a joint call for the United Nations to play a central role in rebuilding Iraq. Both Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim country, and Germany were opposed to the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq. Later on Wednesday, Schröder is to fly on to the Vietnamese capital, Hanoi, for the final stop of his trip to the region.

Prince of Asturias Award goes to German philosopher

German philosopher and social theorist Jürgen Habermas has won the prestigious Prince of Asturias Award for Social Sciences. The distinction, worth $57,500, is often called the Nobel Prize of Spain. Habermas is a leading representative of the so-called "Frankfurt School." This school of thought developed at the Institute for Social Research founded in Frankfurt, Germany, in 1923. It introduced a style of analysis known as critical theory, which draws on the ideas of German political philosopher Karl Marx in its studies of the sources of domination and authority in society that restrict human freedom. The works of Habermas have been translated into over 20 languages and figure amongst the classics of contemporary thought.