An ambitious year

Europe took center stage in Germany's foreign policy in the first half of 2007. As head of the rotating six-month EU presidency, German Chancellor Angela Merkel's priority was to revive talks on the derailed EU constitution treaty as a way of reforming and streamlining the 27-member bloc.

The treaty was rejected by French and Dutch voters in separate referendums, triggering a major crisis in the EU.

"We have set a motto for our presidency: Europe works together," Merkel said at the time. "I can also say: Europe can only work together."

Tough and knowledgeable

Presiding over a deeply divided summit of fellow leaders in March, Merkel showed a first glimpse of her formidable diplomatic skills when she managed to sign them up to binding targets for greenhouse gas emissions and renewable energy.

The German leader was showered with praise from her European counterparts for her personal and inclusive style of leadership and her deep command of the issues under discussion. Two weeks later in Berlin, Merkel had her European colleagues pledge to resolve the EU's constitutional crisis by 2009.

At a crucial summit in June, marked by marathon meetings and fraught negotiations -- in particular with Poland -- EU leaders finally clinched a treaty deal. It dropped the word "constitution," and included a new majority voting system. The deal chalked up another triumph for Merkel.

"Merkel has shown that she can be very tough, that she doesn't shy away from being open and harsh and that she can manage to push through a result with all diplomatic means," Jan Techau, head of the EU policy program at the German Council on Foreign Relations told Deutsche Welle.

G8 summit a mixed success

Fresh off the victorious EU summit, Merkel moved to her next big foreign policy test -- heading the Group of Eight summit and getting the leaders of the world's richest countries to slash global emissions, raise aid to Africa and pledge more money to fight AIDS and malaria. Leaders of the developing world were also invited.

The summit held in Heiligendamm on Germany's Baltic Sea coast was overshadowed by large anti-globalization protests and strong security measures. Though Merkel hailed the summit as a success, critics attacked the event for failing to get the US on board and accept binding commitments to cut CO2 emissions.

Germany's press, which until that point had been full of praise for their first female chancellor, was cool in their assessment.

"Measured in terms of the high-flying expectations she herself whipped up in recent weeks, Angela Merkel failed on climate change at the G-8 summit," Germany's Financial Times Deutschland said.

"This wasn't a breakthrough to save the world climate, it was a makeshift deal to save the summit's reputation," the left-wing Tageszeitung wrote.

Balancing human rights and diplomacy

While Merkel's championing of green issues and her emphasis on the need to tackle climate change -- a stance evident during her stewardship of the EU and G8 -- has earned her praise, her foreign policy record is not perfect.

Her failure, in particular, to improve relations with Russia has upset some of her allies in Berlin who note that Germany draws around a third of its crude oil and gas needs from its powerful eastern neighbor.

"Merkel has tried personally to solve problems with Russia but there's no chemistry with Putin," said Techau. "You can see it on the photographs when they meet: they aren't with each other, but next to each other."

The German leader's firm and public stand on human rights, even if it strains diplomatic ties and jeopardizes business links, has earned her admiration from human rights groups. She has pressed Russia, China and most recently Zimbabwe on questions of human rights.

"Foreign policy has to bring together Germany's values and interests," Merkel said after a furious reaction from Beijing following her meeting with Tibet's exiled spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama. "It's not about values or business."

Her forthright approach, however, has worried German businesses and prompted criticism. Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, a Social Democrat and protégé of former Chancellor Schröder, has accused Merkel of "shop window politics" in her dealings with Russia and China.

Too strong a focus on foreign policy

By contrast, Merkel is credited with improving ties with the US, which had soured under Schröder. Though she enjoys a warm rapport with US President Bush, Merkel's reluctance to pull weight in Afghanistan and send in troops to support the US-led battle against insurgents remains a sticking point.

The general view in Germany is that Merkel has placed too high a premium on foreign policy, putting domestic politics on the back burner.

The chancellor's constant jet-setting around the world to meet with international leaders prompted a telling cartoon in the Berlin-based daily Tagesspiegel: Bush, reclining in an armchair on his Crawford ranch asks Merkel, "Well then, how was your trip to Germany?"

But some question whether the chancellor has really achieved all that much on the international stage.

"She (Merkel) has presented no foreign policy initiatives of her own, no bold plans," daily Berliner Zeitung wrote recently.