Angela Merkel

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German Chancellor Angela Merkel reacts during the debate after her speech for the upcoming EU summit at the German parliament Bundestag in Berlin, Wednesday, June 27, 2012. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

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German Chancellor Angela Merkel arrives May 23, 2012, at the weekly cabinet meeting at the chancellery in Berlin. (Associated Press)

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At the height of the debt crisis last winter, the eurozone – led by German Chancellor Angela Merkel – proposed a so-called "fiscal pact" that would tie member countries to strict fiscal and deficit targets. But, as many economists had predicted, austerity has dragged down already fragile economies and, as economic output shrinks, the debt burden actually looks worse. (Associated Press)

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** FILE ** President Obama kisses German Chancellor Angela Merkel on the cheek on her arrival for the G-8 summit on Friday, May 18, 2012, at Camp David, Md. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)

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** FILE ** German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Norbert Roettgen, a candidate of the conservative Christian Democratic Union party, wave during a campaign rally in Gelsenkirchen, Germany, on Wednesday, May 9, 2012, ahead of elections in the populous German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

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A demonstrator holds up a portrait to make fun of German Chancellor Angela Merkel, now-defeated French President Nicolas Sarkozy (center) and Spanish Employers Organization President Juan Rosell during a May Day protest Tuesday in Pamplona against the Spanish government's tough new labor reforms and cutbacks. (Associated Press)

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German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao acknowledge a welcome during an April visit to the Volkswagen headquarters in Wolfsburg, Germany. The automaker will build a factory in China's far west. (Associated Press)

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** FILE ** German Chancellor Angela Merkel arrives at the weekly Cabinet meeting at the Chancellery in Berlin on Wednesday, March 28, 2012. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

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German Chancellor Angela Merkel arrives Feb. 27, 2012, in Berlin for her speech prior to the debate and the voting of the German Parliament Bundestag about a new Greek rescue package. (Associated Press)

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** FILE ** Former South African President Nelson Mandela smiles as German Chancellor Angela Merkel (left) waves farewell after a meeting at the Nelson Mandela Foundation in Johannesburg in October 2007. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong, File)

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German Chancellor Angela Merkel (left) and French President Nicolas Sarkozy give a joint press conference after a French-German Cabinet meeting at the Elysee Palace in Paris on Monday, Feb. 6, 2012. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

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German Chancellor Angela Merkel speaks during the opening session of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2012. (AP Photo/Keystone, Jean-Christophe Bott)

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French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel tell reporters at a Monday news conference in Berlin that in addition to spending cuts, eurozone nations need economic expansion and more jobs. They suggested using available funding to support small and medium-sized companies and growth projects. (Associated Press)