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In her speech published on Sunday, Merkel said the “issues of destiny” were climate change, migration and the fight against terrorism.

The Chancellor said Germany wanted to try to resolve the issue in accordance with its own interests, but at the same time would take into account the interests of other countries. He said this approach was “a lesson from the two world wars of the last century”. “But this belief is no longer shared by everyone, and international cooperation is under pressure,” he warned.

Putin sends New Year greetings. He forgot about Andrzej Duda

Therefore, according to the German head of government, we must “stand up, argue and fight harder for our beliefs”. “We need to take more responsibility for our own interests,” he said.

He assured that “campaigning for a global solution” would be a priority when Germany becomes a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council on January 1, 2019.

Merkel also said Germany wanted to make the EU “stronger and more capable of taking decisions.” “We want to protect the close partnership that exists with the UK even though the UK has left the EU,” she added.

The Chancellor supports “openness, tolerance and respect”, which – in her opinion – “makes Germany strong”.

At the same time, he acknowledged that his three-party coalition government tested citizens’ patience in 2018. “First of all, it took us a long time to form a government, and when we did, there were conflicts and a lot of vested interests,” he said.

The AP agency wrote that “closing out a politically turbulent 2018 in Germany,” the Chancellor focused in her New Year’s speech on promoting multilateralism, which she “consistently defended” against the policies of US President Donald Trump.

Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer is the new CDU leader

Merkel announced in October that she would not seek re-election as CDU leader and that her current term as head of government would be her last. She also announced that after the current parliamentary term ends in 2021, she does not intend to seek any political office, and in the event of an early general election, she would not run for chancellor.

In early December, party delegates elected Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, seen as her political successor, as Merkel’s successor in the CDU.

RadioZET.pl/PAP/BM