Ms. Merkel is widely expected to win. Her re-election would reinforce her position as a powerful counterpart to President Trump in the United States and President Vladimir V. Putin in Russia. But Ms. Merkel is up for re-election in the fall, and challenging Mr. Trump has become essential in German politics. To understand Ms. Merkel’s relationship with Mr. Putin, don’t miss this in-depth piece on their rivalry of history, distrust and power (Mar. That piece also includes a nugget about talks between the two leaders in 2007: Mr. Putin let his large black Labrador into their meeting room, even though the Kremlin had been told that Ms. Merkel was uneasy around dogs.

Source: New York Times September 11, 2017 03:45 UTC