The New Face of Germany Abroad?

Wolfgang Gerhardt, the foreign policy spokesman for the Liberal Free Democrats (FDP), may not be widely known abroad. But, that could change soon.

Gerhardt, 62, is widely tipped to become Germany's next foreign minister after federal polls in September, expected to bring Christian Democrat Union leader Angela Merkel into power, and their loyal FDP with them as coalition partners.

In anticipation of what polls are showing could be a clear victory for the CDU, Gerhardt already seems to be warming up for his high-profile position traveling to London on Tuesday and Wedensday and meeting his possible future counterpart Jack Straw.

Discussions will focus on the EU's budgetary problems, membership talks with EU candidates Bulgaria and Romania as well as negotiations between the EU and Turkey about Ankara's membership bid.

A break with the past

On all three, Gerhardt's stance marks a break with that adopted by Chancellor Gerhard Schröder's Social Democratic-Green Party coalition in recent years.

"The German-French relationship was the driving force in the western European Union but we have an enlarged Union now," Gerhardt said in an interview with Reuters this week. "We need more contacts with the United Kingdom. We need a little bit of more openness to the East, to Poland and others."

His comments come on the heels of Merkel's visit to France where she demonstratively called for an overhaul of the Franco-German alliance, signaling that a future government would move away from the cozy ties cultivated by Schröder.

The FDP's pro-market stance is a reflection of attitudes among the British leadership as well as the new EU member states. Gerhardt is also a strong proponent of Britain's calls for slashing generous agricultural subsidies in the EU and moving away from the bloc's long-standing emphasis on social protection.

"Tony Blair is right, the budget is over-occupied with agriculture," Gerhardt told Reuters, adding that a deal in which national governments took on a stronger share of agricultural spending --so-called "co-financing" -- could be a way forward.

"We should take this opportunity now with the budget problems to combine this with the British rebate situation. Maybe the only escape is national co-financing," Gerhardt said, adding that France, the prime beneficiary of the EU agricultural subsidies, was largely to blame.

Influential reformist

Long-time kingmakers of German politics, the FDP has provided three of the country's postwar foreign ministers, with Hans-Dietrich Genscher (photo), and his 18 years serving both Social Democrat and CDU coalitions the longest-serving. With all signs pointing towards a continuation of that tradition in the next government, the likely successor to popular current Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer has suddenly become a name to reckon with.

Born in 1943 in a small town in the western German state of Hesse, Gerhardt, was the son of a German soldier who died shortly before the end of the Second World War. He grew up on a small farm and went on to study politics, education and German literature.

He joined the FDP in 1965 and rose to the top party ranks in 1983 when he was elected chairman of the FDP parliamentary group in Hesse. Gerhardt, who caught attention with his persistent calls for pro-market reforms and overhauling Germany's education system, made his breakthrough on the national front when he was elected to the federal parliament in the then capital of Bonn in 1994 and was elected federal chairman of the FDP a year later.

Gerhardt is largely credited with sharpening the profile of the FDP in the ensuing years and came to be the unwavering proponent of liberal ideology in the party. Memorable domestic reform initiatives included liberalizing Germany's restrictive shop opening hours, modernizing citizenship laws and overhauling social systems and the red tape. On the foreign policy front, Gerhardt showed himself to be a strong Atlanticist.

In the run-up to the 2002 federal elections, a power struggle engulfed the FDP, with Gerhardt finally compromising with FDP General Secretary Guido Westerwelle and stepping aside to let him take over the party reins. The party also fluctuated between its traditional role as a pro-business party and erratic attempts to draw in new supporters with populism.

As the FDP attempted to portray itself as a "fun party" in the federal elections in 2002, at times descending into ridiculous gaffes, Gerhardt continued to command respect for serious liberal thinking and continuity. Following the death of maverick FDP politician Möllemann in 2003 and a damaging debate about anti-Semitism, Gerhardt gained in influence, outshining FDP leader Guido Westerwelle in his seemingly unassailable reputation.

By the end of last year, following a party conference where Gerhardt asserted his party's demand for a transatlantic bent in foreign policy and a definitive "no" to Turkey's EU entry, German media was left in no doubt about Gerhardt's standing. "The influence of former boss Wolfgang Gerhardt is growing in the former fun-party," the Süddeutsche Zeitung newspaper wrote.

Turkey, Europe could prove divisive

The FDP's stated foreign policy may chime with Merkel's CDU on most fronts, but there are potential pitfalls. One of them is likely to be European politics, with several influential Union politicians indicating that they would like the chancellor's office to be fully in charge of the issue -- a move that's unlikely to go down well with a future foreign ministry headed by Gerhardt.

Another sticking point is expected to be the future expansion of the EU. The Christian Social Union (CSU), the sister Bavarian party of the CDU, has signaled that it's accepting the membership of Romania and Bulgaria with gritted teeth but has ruled out any further expansion "for a long time." That sits awkwardly with Gerhardt's enthusiasm for new member states.

But, the most potentially explosive issue between the future coalition members will undoubtedly be Turkey. While the Union has said it will only be prepared to offer Turkey "privileged partnership" of the EU, the FDP has said it wants to hold on to the possibility of entry. "I'm skeptical if Turkey will become a full member, but I can't rule out the possibility," Gerhardt said recently in an interview with news magazine Spiegel.

The latter is also expected to be problematic for Gerhardt's insistence on repairing ties with Washington, badly strained by Schröder's opposition to the US-led war in Iraq, given America's desire to see Turkey in the European Union.

It certainly looks like Germany may have a almost new foreign policy if the conservatives come to power in September. But, in one respect, there will be no change, according to Gerhardt.

"We also won't send any German soldiers to Iraq," Gerhardt said.