Emily Haber has been the German ambassador to the US since June 2018 and she's just
about to retire from a long career in the German foreign service, with
deployments to the western Balkans and Moscow. Mrs. Ambassador, there were no shortages and huge
challenges during your time here in Washington: There was Donald Trump in the White House, there
was COVID-19, there is the ongoing war in Ukraine. But before we come to that, I would like to ask
you more of a personal question: You traveled this country quite extensively. What surprised
you about the American people and what can maybe Germans and Europeans learn from the Americans?
Well, what probably surprised me most, although it shouldn't have, was the kindness, friendliness,
the polite and welcoming attitude that is in the American DNA. I think that's something Germans
could really learn from the Americans. Some people say that's fake here in the
United States. Do you agree? I guess those who are saying
it's fake confound rudeness with authenticity and honesty, too. So I don't, I don't agree with them.
That's interesting. We have to talk about Donald Trump, the former president of the United States.
Have you ever been with him in one room? Oh yes, of course. When I handed over my
credentials, of course I handed it over to him five years ago, and then there were a couple of
times when I saw him too, in bilateral settings. What kind of vibe does he put out?
He’s certainly someone with very — with very strong vibes and people react to that. You've seen
it in political meetings, you've seen it at big PACs, etc: he is someone that dominates a room.
There is a chance that he gets reelected. Is there any way that
Germany and Europe can prepare for that? Look, what I meant by saying dominating
the conversation was, we have always been, at least over the past five years, very much
focusing on personalities, on the individual. But the transatlantic relationship really goes
far beyond that. It is a very intense fabric of multiple links, relationships — from academia
to business to culture, to personal links — I think, of all the servicemen and servicewomen
who have done a tour of service in Germany. So all of that exists. Think of sister cities,
think of regional contacts. That's — that's just such an intense fabric and it doesn't it
doesn't get weaker or more feeble simply because politics in Washington are this or that. I have
always felt when traveling that the conversations we were having within the Beltway really didn't,
didn't percolate down to other regions. So, and I thought this was indicative of structures in the
relationship that exist, whether we disagreed about Nord Stream 2 or about trade deficits.
So you would say this is kind of an understanding with this, which is somewhat
untouched by who is in the White House? does make a difference if someone,
if an administration is convinced of the relevance of international structures, treaties, agreements,
organizations, institutions of multilateralism, if you will. That does make a difference compared
to an administration that bilateralizes a relationship, because in that case every
single isometric relationship, the one that holds more power will be the one able to prevail. So,
there is a difference. But setting that aside, the transatlantic relationship has potential to
reinforce our collective clout. That has always been recognized across the — across the aisle.
And do you see that also like in the younger generation? There is some concern that the GIs,
you know, who were really big kind of ambassadors for the — for the
German-American transatlantic relationship when they talked about their experiences with
Brötchen and Bratwurst and whatnot? We don't have that anymore. So my question, I think,
is: do you see the transatlantic relationship also as important for the younger American generation?
Look, first of all, you're right. The American servicemen and servicewomen who've been to Germany
came back with a knowledge of Germany, with ties, with individual friendships, they had neighbors.
And in a way, whenever I traveled, people would come up to me and said, ‘I served in Ramstein,’ or
‘I served in Bavaria,’ and would be saying nice things and sharing their memories. So that is
certainly decreasing as the numbers have decreased over the past years. But that's only one element.
The other element is that for many decades, there was this arsenal of shared memories, from
the Luftbrücke, that is the Airlift, to Kennedy's Berlin speech, to the fall of the Wall, to Martin
Luther King in Berlin. You see, all of these big events that I'm mentioning now are dated now. So,
what we will have to get used to is that we'll have to reframe the transatlantic relationship
and it will have to adjust to the realities of our time. And I think in hindsight we will — we will
come to the conclusion that Russia's aggression against Ukraine and our capacity for resolve and
determination and perseverance in responding to that aggression will turn out to be an engine
for how we want — for the place we want the transatlantic relationship to be in the future.
Ambassador, you also have been here during COVID-19. What do you think we
should learn from this pandemic, from this world crisis, regarding our vulnerabilities?
I think there's a lot to learn. The first one is from mistakes we've made, and now,
just talking about the German side, it took us a moment or two until we were capable to actually
contribute to a collective European response. During that crisis we also learned that not only
is it a risk, but this risk is amplified by the potential of individual actors trying to weaponize
these dependencies for political objectives. Ambassador, you have been here when the new
chancellor took office. That came in a moment just right before the war in Ukraine started.
There was a lot of reporting in Germany and other countries that the relationship between the White
House and the German Chancellor, Chancellery, sorry, wasn't so great in the beginning.
I don't agree with the premise of your question. I don't think it is true at
all that the relationship was under stress when the chancellor arrived here. What I
have seen ever since the new administration took over, was substantial and significant and broad
agreement between Germany and America. Were there disagreements? Yes, there were disagreements,
there are always nuances and different vantage points or even different views on issues. So, they
were there. But I always think that it is not the nature of disagreements or nuances that define the
quality and the state of a relationship, it's the way you manage and handle them. And in that case,
both sides — the American administration and the German federal government — were united in trying
to find solutions for problems in a way that would benefit and not disrupt the relationship. So yes,
there were disagreements, but they did not affect the nature or the direction, nor the
sense of purpose and unity of both governments. What would be the biggest challenges for both of
our countries, for the US and Germany working together over the next months and years?
Obviously, what comes to mind first is dealing with Russia's aggression against Ukraine,
because the outcome of that war will largely define and shape the
international geopolitical and geoeconomic landscape, the landscape of influence,
if you will. Many countries across the world will closely watch out whether we are capable to
sustain the level of support we have provided for Ukraine, whether we are able to sustain
our perseverance, whether we are able to continue. That's hugely important. It will
define our credibility and it will define the legitimacy of our cause, which is the
defense of international law and the defense of foundational principles of the UN Charter.
Mrs. Ambassador, that's my last one, it’s a tough one: Your time comes to an end here.
What will you miss most about the United States in an everyday life, and I'm not talking about
the Bratwurst here at the receptions at the German Embassy. What is that? What will you miss most?
Okay, two things, one I've mentioned already, and that is the genuine kindness,
openness and welcoming attitude of Americans across the country. I've
always deeply respected that. The second thing I’ll miss is the sense of individual
responsibility that is also so much in the American DNA, by which I mean a sense
of individual responsibility and individual initiative whenever confronted with a problem or
a challenge. I think Europeans very often turn to the state and expect the state to deliver
solutions or remedies in a specific, challenging situation, whereas Americans are looking
very much towards themselves and how to remedy a situation. I'm not saying that it's — I do
realize that can be a problem if the state takes no responsibility at all, but I think
the individual responsibility for making the world a better place, or for simply making a difference,
if you will, that is something that I've always admired here and that I will miss.
Ambassador Emily Haber, thank you so very much and all the best.
You’re welcome