Norwegians have most trust in Merkel

US President Donald Trump and German Chancellor Angela MerkelUS President Donald Trump and German Chancellor Angela Merkel. (Michael Kappeler/Pool Photo via AP)

Norwegians have the greatest confidence in the German Prime Minister Angela Merkel to do the best job for world peace, according to a new poll.

 

In the poll, conducted by Ipsos for Dagbladet between the 20 and 29 June, 55 percent said they most trusted Merkel. Professor Erik Oddvar Eriksen believes this is because she takes a strong moral position.
– She supports the liberal principles of tolerance, the rule of law, human rights and democracy and is not afraid to say what this means, he says.
 Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau then follows on 18 percent and France’s newly elected President Emmanuel Macron got 15 percent.
US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin both got 5 percent. Lastly, China’s President Xi Jinping comes in with 3 percent.
Senior researcher Svein Melbye says to the newspaper that Trump must take a lot of the blame for the occurrence of what he calls a ‘trust vacuum’.
“There is great uncertainty about the future role of the United States in the world, and the appearance of Trump has made this more acute. It’s an enormous trust problem and a trust vacuum, he says.

© NTB Scanpix / Norway Today

 

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