For Germany, 2025 was a year of disappointment: loud promises, few results, growing skepticism towards the government. Therefore, in 2026, bold and decisive action must be taken, writes Dirk Emmerich in his commentary.
For Germany, 2025 was a year of disappointment and disillusionment. Federal Chancellor Friedrich Merz promised a lot, but has so far delivered little. He wanted to put the country back on the path of growth. Germans were supposed to feel that things were improving in the summer. It was planned to end illegal migration and implement reforms in the fall. A special fund of 500 billion euros was created to modernize the infrastructure. But very little has been achieved.
Meanwhile, Christian Democrat Friedrich Merz has become just as unpopular with voters as his predecessor, Social Democrat Olaf Scholz. Two-thirds of Germans do not believe that the ruling coalition, including conservatives and Social Democrats, will remain in power until the next elections in 2029.
The world has changed in 2025, and Germany?
2026 should be a year of hope. Germany must do its homework.
The global security structure is changing rapidly and Europe risks falling into the "second league" of players on the political scene. The US has effectively ended the transatlantic partnership and formulated a new security strategy in which Europe is more of a burden for them. As the world's leading exporter, China controls strategically important global supply chains for raw materials and actively uses this power. And Europe has to admit that the strategy of forcing Russia to end the war in Ukraine through sanctions has not worked as expected.
Germany and Europe must rethink their development if they want to play a significant role in the global confrontation in 2026. The EU, in which 27 countries negotiate until everyone unanimously accepts the minimum compromise, is an important achievement for the continent, but in the conditions of the new global balance of power, this system no longer works.
One example: in the summer, due to the concerns of European agricultural unions, the EU again restricted agricultural exports from Ukraine, which had been liberalized since the beginning of the war in 2022. Ukraine could earn more money on its own. Instead, it receives a loan from the EU worth 90 billion euros. This is not logical from an economic point of view.
The EU can no longer be held back by the national egoism of individual countries and needs a deep reform, as a result of which the course will be determined by the big countries. It does not have to be followed by everyone. What is wrong with that? In this situation, Hungary, the Czech Republic and Slovakia will simply remain on the sidelines. Europe must be able to defend its interests.
2026: Germany must be ready for change
As for Germany's "home", it must resolutely reform its social and pension system. The country's economic attractiveness must be restored. 2026 requires a new approach in this regard as well. For example, if the money from the special fund is invested in the creation of a high-speed rail network between the largest metropolises - Berlin, Munich, Hamburg, Frankfurt, Leipzig and Cologne. Concentrating the funds in one big project would give a powerful impulse to the entire economy. Or find another project - like a plan called "Germany 2030", which would become a goal for the country in the coming years.
This requires courage and leadership skills. The government must take on this role - and society expects it. The need for change must be explained to people and there should be no fear of difficult decisions. The existing strange attitude that "those up there" are incapable of anything, but then someone will fix things, will not save the situation in 2026.
Geostrategic changes in the world will not wait. Things in Germany will not improve just because of the eventual end of the war in Ukraine or because Donald Trump will cease to be president of the United States at some point.
In the new year, I would like to see courage in setting new guidelines and a willingness to make changes, as well as the determination needed to implement them.
Over the past 80 years, Germany has repeatedly shown that it is capable of this.
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This comment expresses the personal opinion of the author and may not coincide with the positions of the Bulgarian editorial office and DW as a whole.