I still hope that the American system of checks and balances will ultimately prevent this man, Donald Trump, with his erratic political style, from jeopardizing our European security architecture.

We won't get any growth in Greece by just imposing cuts. What I would prefer is a special economic zone for Greece.

You can't always be demanding solidarity from others and then refuse to show it yourself.

If we want to defeat Islamic State, we first have to arrive at a cease-fire agreement in Syria. Once that has been achieved, an anti-IS coalition can be assembled, including Russia, Saudi Arabia and Iran. That, however, will be significantly more difficult in the wake of Turkey's downing of the Russian plane.

I still hope that the American system of checks and balances will ultimately prevent this man, Donald Trump, with his erratic political style, from jeopardizing our European security architecture.

We have committed ourselves to pursue joint policies, but then national governments say, "We aren't bound by that." That is a dramatic situation, because solidarity is a basic principle that cannot be had on an à la carte basis. If we have rules that nobody adheres to, then the community will break apart.

When it comes to climate protection, the whole world will have to pay the price. But if Donald Trump intends to conclude a trade agreement with the EU, he will have to abide by our climate standards. In any case, waiving climate protection does not make American products more competitive.