Euro bailouts cause Germans more angst than Ukraine, poll finds

Germans are much more worried about how the lingering effects of the eurozone crisis will impact their pockets than the risk of getting involved in foreign conflicts like Ukraine, according to an annual survey of German angst released on Thursday.

Even though the debt crisis in the currency zone has ebbed, and been replaced by Ukraine in the news headlines, six out of 10 were concerned about the impact on German taxpayers of eurozone bailouts. Less than four in 10 worried about Ukraine.

That may reflect public confidence in Chancellor Angela Merkel's cautious approach to the West's stand-off with Russia over Ukraine. She rules out a military solution and has tried to maintain dialogue with President Vladimir Putin.

Enduring worry about the euro crisis, on the other hand, may explain the rise of Alternative for Germany (AfD), a Eurosceptic party which has won seats in the European Parliament and took votes from Merkel's conservatives in a state election in Saxony.

"People have their own view, which differs from politicians and the people in charge of economic and monetary policy who say debt is under control and the bailout policy is working," said Manfred Schmidt, a politics professor from Heidelberg.

Analysing the "Fear of the Germans" poll carried out for the insurance company R+V at a news conference, he said the bailout scheme had calmed fears of an existential threat to the currency itself, «but people know this will cost German taxpayers a lot."

As Europe's biggest economy, Germany has to make the biggest contribution to bailouts for struggling eurozone states such as Greece. Merkel insisted on tough fiscal reforms in return and is currently resisting a push from the likes of France and Italy to relax such fiscal...