By Bruno Waterfield - 15th September 2005
European Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes is under fire after expressing support for German opposition leader Angela Merkel.
The Dutch EU executive has sparked a row after backing Merkel against Gerhard Schroeder in Sunday’s German election.
“The election of this excellent politician would be wonderful for the whole of Europe,” she wrote in Holland's daily Trouw newspaper.
Kroes has defended her comments on the grounds of gender, with the argument that the Dutch woman intervened “to discuss the wider participation of women in politics and business”.
According to the Dutch Liberal, Merkel’s female gender equips her to breakthrough a German political culture that obstructs “optimal decisions.”
“Women have the tendency to break through this blockade through direct contacts, regardless of formal bureaucratic structures,” she claims.
“In this sense, the conduct of Angela Merkel could lead to radical changes in Germany.”
Outside the question of shared female gender, critics have pointed to political alliances in common between Kroes and Merkel.
Kroes is a member of a Christian Democrat and Liberal ruling alliance in the Netherlands, Merkel leads a similar centre-right coalition in Germany.
German MEP, and leader of the European Parliament’s Socialists, Martin Schulz drew attention to a shared neo-liberal economic agenda.
“This is an unacceptable interference in the internal affairs of a member state, regardless of Kroes’s motivation,” he told FT Europe.
“As we know, Kroes stands for ultra market-liberalism, so it is not surprising that she supports Merkel who shares the same values.”
As Germany's election has progressed Merkel has traded on her gender as she has slipped in the opinion polls.
The centre-right opposition leader recently highlighted "being from two minorities - being east German and being a woman".
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