The German leader has one clear requirement: a candidate must be in sympathy with her political culture.

It dictated that German military leaders were to be tried as war criminals.

That makes her one of the few nonsmoking German leaders.

Bill Clinton will not be happy to hear what German political and business leaders say about him.

It is an awesome responsibility for another set of German leaders.

So German military leaders are trying to define new missions.

The retirement of the mark has not gone the way either German or French leaders expected.

German leaders strongly felt otherwise, and they made a reasonable case.

Only when the issue was nearly settled did it assume real significance in the mind of the German leader.

By contrast, German leaders did not show much interest in the subject until a few months ago.