Only Germany can save the eurozone, therefore Germany must — such is the refrain heard around the world. For non-Germans, it is increasingly hard to understand why the country is not moving forcefully to stop the debt crisis.
The past week's coordinated action by the world's top central banks to strengthen global lending only underscored the need for urgent action in Europe.
Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski, who sees the continent "on the edge of a precipice," made a dramatic appeal last week for leadership from Berlin: "I fear German power less than I am beginning to fear German inactivity," he declared.