Gabriel on visit to US
October 22, 2014
Economy Minister and Vice Chancellor Sigmar Gabriel, on his first visit to the United States, praised the country's "reindustrialization" - referring to cheap energy provided by fracking - saying it opens up opportunities to German companies.
While on his two-day visit in Washington, he attended an event Wednesday at the Center for American Progress, where he criticized a demand that the German economy take blows in order to boost the European economy.
"We could double our debt and it wouldn't boost Italy's and France's competitive abilities," he said, adding that a larger German debt would not help Renault or Peugeot sell more cars.
Instead, he said one of Berlin's goals was to create European growth and attract more private investment.
Regarding austerity measures, Gabriel defended Germany's goal to create a budget for 2015 without incurring new debt. Supporting Chancellor Angela Merkel, he said that government stimulus packages, riding on the back of debt, only had the effect of "burning straw."
He said Germany's grand coalition of Social Democrats (SPD) and Christian Democrats (CDU) already had a stimulus plan drawn out to provide $23 billion (18 billion euros) in investment in areas such as infrastructure and education.
New free trade agreement
Gabriel also spoke to US Treasury Secretary Jack Lew and will meet Vice President Joe Biden, with whom he will discuss an array of topics. Tough negotiations on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) trade agreement between the EU and the US were expected to take place.
The agreement would remove customs duties and other trade barriers, thus creating economic growth and jobs. With 800 million consumers, it would create the world's largest economic zone.
Negotiations on the agreement have been difficult so far, with opposition coming from both sides of the Atlantic over fears the deal could be detrimental to smaller economies.
A decision on the deal is expected by the end of the year.
sb/rc (dpa, Reuters)