German Chancellor Angela Merkel is considering joining French President Emmanuel Macron at the World Economic Forum in Davos next week in what could turn into an epic clash of competing world views with U.S. President Donald Trump.
Merkel, who has been struggling to put together a government since a German election in September, had been expected to skip the annual gathering of leaders, CEOs, bankers and celebrities in the Swiss Alps for a third straight year.
But after clinching a preliminary coalition agreement with the center-left Social Democrats, or SPD, on Friday, German officials said Merkel could travel to Davos after all, possibly setting up a major confrontation with Trump, who is expected to speak on the final day of the forum.
An appearance would signal Merkel's return to the world stage after months of political limbo in which she has avoided the limelight and been dismissed by some in the German and international media as a spent force.
It would also allow her and Macron, who is scheduled to speak at the forum on Jan 24, two days before Trump, to reaffirm their commitment to reforming the European Union after Britain's decision to leave, and to defend liberal democratic values in the face of Trump's "America First" policies.
Merkel's spokesman Steffen Seibert was coy last week when asked whether she might attend the forum.
Still considering
Officials at the WEF said they believed Merkel was still considering whether to attend. If she does, it is unlikely that she or Macron would overlap with Trump, who is expected to arrive on the afternoon of Jan 25.
This year's forum will be opened by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Jan 23. Britain's Theresa May, Canada's Justin Trudeau and Israel's Benjamin Netanyahu are also expected, as well as celebrities such as actress Cate Blanchett and musician Elton John.
Since inauguration, Trump has pulled the US out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, announced a withdrawal from the Paris climate accord and threatened to torpedo an agreement between Western powers and Iran aimed at curbing its nuclear program.
He has stirred fears of conflict with Pyongyang by engaging in an escalating war of words with its top leader Kim Jong-un. Last week, he stirred international outrage by referring to Haiti and African nations as "shithole countries", according to members of Congress who attended a meeting in the White House.
On Saturday, some 500 demonstrators marched in the Swiss capital Bern to protest against Trump's plans to attend the WEF.
"There are very few things in the world that unite countries as much as their antipathy toward Trump and what he is doing," said Ian Bremmer, president of political risk consultancy Eurasia Group, and a regular at Davos.
"In the United States, he may have 40 percent who approve of what he's doing. In the Davos crowd it is closer to 5 percent."
