anchor: this is dw news, live from berlin. after three years at the helm, she is ready for another year. we will hear what it means for angela merkel's party, her political rivals and for germany. pope francis says abortion is a great sin but tells priests they have the power to forgive that sin. how will that play into the debate in the united states? an attack on a shiite target in kabul.

chancellor merkel's announcement on sunday that she is prepared to stand for a fourth term surprised nobody as the likelihood has been speculated over and talked up for weeks, so much so that mrs. merkel had to talk down expectations in her announcement. let us take a listen. mrs. merkel: under the circumstances, i am ready to stand for reelection. i have also said the following clearly. after the election results in the united states, there have been statements aout how much depends on me now. that is an honor, but i find it bizarre and bordering on the absurd. no one person, no matter how

experienced, can single-handedly forced the situation to change for the better. in germany, in europe, the world, and certainly the german chancellor cannot either. anne: angela merkel decision has been subject to speculation at the highest level. u.s. president barack obama said he would vote for her if he had the right. merkel's announcement is the opening salvo in the run-up to germany from election at the end of 2017. >> the dominant theme in all of germany's headlines, angela merkel is running again, she wants another term, and will stand for chancellor. the announcement is putting pressure on the country's spd to name their candidate. party chief and current vice chancellor could end up running against merkel, but that is a big quote if." the plenty -- a big "if."

we'll see in january who put themselves forward for chancellor. they will be meeting with the party executive. if there are several, party members will vote on it. the populist afd party is welcoming the chance to unseat merkel and are attacking her record as chancellor. the party leader said malia politician responsible for the dangerous immigration chaos -- now the politician responsible for dangerous immigration chaos is standing for reelection. the green party are not yet talking about a possible coalition with merkel's cdu, instead they are pushing their own agenda. we look forward to the election. we will campaign hard on issues but we will be fair as democratic values did tape. -- dictate. her announcement has thrust all parties into the 2017 election campaign, ready or not. anne: for more on this now, we

are joined by hans in washington. you are from the german marshall front of the organization. is this a good thing for germany, europe, and the world? hans: first of all, it is not a huge surprise. there were no other real candidates among the christian democrats, so it seemed to me a foregone conclusion that she was going to be the candidate and everybody in berlin was ready, had already seen this as a decision that had already been taken. whether it is a good thing or not, it is probably slightly better than the alternatives, but i don't think, i think merkel is absolutely right to say the expectations on her are

absurd and grotesque. although some people may find this reassuring that she is standing again, i am very worried about the future of the world, and i think as a german, i would be particularly worried as well. anne: why are you worried? hans: the consequences, i think the consequences of a trump presidency are so huge for america, for the world, in particular for germany, i must say, that regardless of whether merkel's chancellor from next september or not, and i assume she will be, she will lead a grand coalition after the election next september. i think the consequences are so huge and it is difficult to see what germany can do under the current circumstances to

minimize those consequences for germany and for europe. in particular, the question mark that hangs over the u.s. security guarantee towards europe and germany, and that is just a huge element of uncertainty. anne: merkel herself does not seem too happy with being labeled "the liberal west's last defender," but how much truth is there in that label? hans: i think the reality is that the free world has no leader anymore, after the election of donald trump. the idea that angela merkel can somehow replace the president of the united states as the leader of the free world is, as she put it, "absurd." the only reason that the discussion made any sense when it was applied to the president of the united states was because the u.s. with a global power. germany is not a global power.

it has nothing to offer u.s. allies in asia, like japan. secondly, the only reason that description made sense, "leader of the free world," was because the united states had military power to defend democracies against, in the context of the cold world, against the soviet union -- the cold war, it is the soviet union. it would not be prepared to deploy it in the same way the united eights. -- the united states. it would not make sense to refer to merkel as leader of the free world. the reality is that the free world is now leaderless. anne: so you are the author of the paradox of german power and you talk about the german question. is there a new german question? if so, what is it? hans: no. i mean, i think the german

question is the same as it was before the election of trump. the new german question i have written about has emerged since the end of the cold war and it has become more acute since the creation of the european single currency and the euro crisis began. those internal problems that europe faces centered on germany have not really changed since the election of donald trump, but the fact that they remain unresolved are now, that is now even more significant because now, you do really need a europe that is able to act, and because of all of these problems have not been resolved and the german question has not been resolved, that is now even more catastrophic than it was before the election of donald trump. anne: it is catastrophic, you are saying, u.s. president-elect has not been one of merkel's most vocal supporters. if their working relationship turned sour, how big an impact could this have on u.s. and european ties?

hans: it will obviously have a huge impact but i think the danger is not just so much that merkel and trump don't get along or they cannot establish a good working relationship. that is not what i think the biggest threat is. the biggest threat is that you now have the u.s. president about to take office in january, who has questioned the fundamentals of u.s. foreign-policy that go back to 1945, in particular, the commitment to what we call international order and the commitment to u.s. allies including european allies and to nato. that is happening at a time when you have russian revisionism, and that essentially leaves europeans including germany completely defenseless against russian aggression. and that is the real challenge,

not so much that model and trump might not get along. it is the fact that it is not clear today whether the u.s. security guarantee actually any longer applies to germany. germany has been gradually moving in the direction of spending more on the fence -- more on defense and taking more responsibility for security, edging towards the 2% of gdp nature members are committed to spend, but that was all in the context in which the u.s. was still committed to nato and committed to defending its allies against attack. that is no longer clear, so actually, now, the demand on germany are much greater than they were couple of weeks ago. anne: ok, thank you very much for joining us. hans: thanks. anne: pope francis has given all caps at priests the permanent right to forgive abortion.

the declaration was part of an announcement written by the pontiff to end the capital year -- catholic year of mercy. this applies to those who have had abortions and those who carry them out. the pope maintains however that abortion remains "a great sin." meanwhile, in the u.s., president elect donald trump said on the campaign trail that he would like to see the supreme court reverse it decision on row versus wade. the case that legalized abortion. >> a two month embryo already resembles a human baby, says this woman. one reason she regards abortion is murder. she dropped her ambition of becoming a teacher to counsel pregnant women. her goal is to prevent as many abortions as possible. mary: my generation, we really care about human rights and we

are not as easily sold on the political rhetoric that people, organizations like planned parenthood and hillary clinton keep pushing out about "my body, my choice." more and more people are saying it is a human life. >> over the years, trump has changed his decision from supporting the right to abortion to opposing it. trump emphasized his change stand during the third residential debate in graphic terms. >> you can say that that is ok and hillary can say that is ok, but it is not ok with me. based on what she is saying and where she is going and where she has been, you can take the baby and rip the baby out of the will in the ninth month. on the final day. >> hillary clinton restated her long-held view that abortion should be available to women. >> i strongly support movie wade, which guarantees a constitutional right to a woman to mke the most intimate, most

difficult, in many cases decision about her health care that one can imagine. >> women like breanne butler c trump's strong -- see trump's strong stance against abortion rights. she has organized a women's march on washington, one day after trump is sworn in as u.s. president. >> we are not trying to take him out of office. we are sending a message like "hey, it is your first day, welcome to the job, this is who you are dealing with." we have a voice and we are not going to be silenced. >> mary works as a director in new york city, among the thousands of women planning to attend the market on washing -- the march on washington. she is appalled that this is even up for discussion. >> i believe wholeheartedly in the unbounded ability and right

of a woman to have an abortion. wherever she wants to, however she wants to, and it is so unfair that our government governs our bodies when men have nothing like that. >> abortion is an issue that has divided americans for decades and it is likely to be even more contentious in a trump presidency. anne: the so-called islamic state group has named responsibility for a suicide attack in kabul. at least 30 people were killed and others were injured. eyewitnesses say the plastic to lace at the end of a prayer ceremony. friend ami -- ashraf ghani claims the attacks are barbaric. you are watching dw news. coming up next, dropping hints about the exit. theresa may tells leaders that britain will not fall off a cliff when it leaves the e.u.,

but how does she plan to boost confidence? our business desk will have more on that. all of that and more in just one minutes time. do not go away.

anne: welcome back. you are with dw news. angela merkel has announced she will run for a fourth term in elections late next year. she said she thought about the decision long and hard before finally ending months of speculation last night. she has been called a woman of steel for her fearless fight against corruption. she finished her seventh year term as south africa's public protector. she became one of the most popular figures in the country, but the record of defending

the constitution and going after president jacob zuma himself. she is picking up an award in berlin. the german africa foundation's annual price for promoting peace, democracy, and human rights. >> she was born here in a township south of johannesburg and she is always happy to be here. she advocated for the people by bringing those in power to justice. >> the institution is not me. it is a group of men and women who care about a proper conduct and about social justice, who want to help, whenever you feel talking that you wanted to do with government offices, that have not been answered. >> she defended the underprivileged against death petition -- despotism.

she investigated the president and filed a report concerning his financial dealings, resulting in a major scandal. she made it enemies but also won many admirers. >> you try your level best to take out all of the -- >> she has played a tremendous role in checking and exposing the corruption that has taken place. >> she is wonderful in every way. she is what south africans can be and what we should always aspire to be. >> she was seen as handling the role of public protector with integrity in an environment that is increasingly at scrupulous -- unscrupulous and corrupt. this is a house where she grew up, the struggle against apartheid played a major role in shaping her and the support of her family. >> my dad was somebody who was very assertive when he said "to

aid, you have to do aid." he gave in one came to her because he allowed her -- when it came to her because he allowed her -- she was determined. >> she complained tirelessly against corruption despite enormous pressure. anne: madison news for now. helene at is here with the business news. >> theresa may says she wants her country to have the lowest corporation tax out of the world's 20 most industrialized countries. speaking to business leaders in london, many pledged not to leave businesses on a cliff edge when written lease that you. helena: it is these -- when britain leaves the e.u..

posting gains in response. in germany, a slashed corporation tax has the government worried with the finance minister warning london against a race to the bottom. >> the british prime minister wants her country to remain an attractive location for business even outside the e.u.. lower taxes will do the trick, she things, by keeping british businesses from leaving and attracting new ones from abroad. >> it is not about propping up failing industries are picking winners, but creating the conditions where winners can emerge and grow. it is about backing those winners all the way to encourage them to invest in the long-term future of britain. it is about delivering jobs to every corner of the country. >> london fletcher dropped the corporate tax rate from 20% to about 17%. some suggest corporate tax rates

could be as low as 15%. that is double the current corporate tax rate here in germany. may is also promising to plow nearly 2.5 billion euros every year into research and development. a clear bid to attract top scientific and engineering talent from around the world. germany says it is way too early to react to the proposals. >> great britain is still a member of the european union and has not submitted a request to leave so they are not bound by european law, but soon or later, the brits will no longer be bound by that law. to stay in business with their european partners however, they will have to negotiate new laws, and london may find itself forced to make new compromises. helena: frustration at the zimbabwe's economic collapse.

a series of large street protests with security forces often staging violent crackdowns on demonstrators. the government plan of introducing bond notes as triggered further anger with concerns that the move to print money will lead to another spell of hyperinflation. the government says bonnie notes will become -- bonded notes -- bond notes has been delayed several times. >> unemployment in zimbabwe is about 90%. thousands of companies have shut down. many fear this would trigger more economic chaos, wiping out their savings and livelihoods. >> previously, it disappears. i fear that the bond notes will not stipulate internationally. >> we don't want to use the bond

notes because they are as bad as what we faced before when we faced cash shortages. so we do not need them. but the country has run out of u.s. dollar notes in recent months, and now the government hopes to use a cash crunch by printing notes by its own reserve bank. 92-year-old them bubble in -- zimbabwean president -- the cash shortage has forced the government to delay paying salaries to civil servants and the military. the country is suffering a severe drought and is threatened by famine in some areas. >> germany's engineering company says it is going to press ahead with plans to sell its business to china's investment fund in

spite of objections to the 670 million deal in the united states. american policymakers presumably do not want the technology to end up in chinese hands because the american military contractors are among exxon's customers. shares dropped over 7% on monday. authorities with their support for the deal last month. passengers should get ready for some disruptions. pilots union cockpit has caused a strike in a string of disputes. it is about pay for the 5400 crew, cargo, and a subsidiary german wings. they call for a pay hike of over 22% stretched out over five years. passengers, check your options now. if you are planning on flying

with lufthansa or german wings on thursday. anne: as the borders have been drawn and redrawn, the daily lives of people living near the borders have grown increasingly complex. just walking to the neighbors house may require a passport or visa and an errant kick of a soccer ball could cause an international incident. >> there is no cheering crowd on the main pitch. no tv coverage, but this match is an international one. practically every match played here is because the pitch is split between bosnia and croatia. players cross into and out of that you several times per game -- into the e.u. several times per game. there are no problems on the pitch but it is true when the ball does over the fence, it land in croatia, so we get our

logistics manager, who has a passport with him, to retrieve the ball. we are trying not to use voice to bring them back in order to avoid problems. god for bid somebody could arrest them on the other side. a little while later, a boy is the closest to an air vent ball. -- an errant ball. others have found themselves in trouble after crossing the border. this farmers land is split between the two countries. he has been arrested twice and find just from going about his work -- and fined jets are going about his work. i was just crossing into my land like i have always crossed it. supposedly, the borders around here. you see this creek, but nobody really knows exactly. there are no guards insight or checkpoints. these players are reminded of the breakup of yugoslavia every

time they lose a football. anne: breaking news. juergen klinsmann has been fired as the head of the national football team. a reminder of our top story we're following. germany's chancellor, angela merkel, has announced she will run for a fourth term in elections late next year. if you are watching dw news from berlin and you can get all of the latest news and information around the clock on our website on dw.com. stay with us.

♪ [theme music] ♪ [theme music] ernabel demillo: hi, welcome to asian american life. i'm ernabel demillo. gong hey fat choy. happy lunar new year. it's the year of the monkey and the museum of chinese in america is ringing in the new year with a lion dance, with the lion you see above me which symbolizes good luck and fortune. this month they're also hosting numerous events from family festivities to music and art performances. along with celebrating lunar new year the museum also houses