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Merkel declares Europe top priority for new government
By EUobserver
German chancellor Angela Merkel declared Europe a top priority for a new government, when addressing the country in her annual televised new year speech. The "27 states in Europe must be persuaded more strongly than ever to stand united as a community," she said, adding Germany's "future is bound indivisibly with the future of Europe." Berlin hopes to work with French president Emmanuel Macron to future-proof the EU, she said.