German Foreign Policy, the Ukraine Crisis and the Euro-Atlantic Order: Assessing the Dynamics of Change

Abstract

More than any other country in Europe, Germany has been the main beneficiary of the post-cold war order in the Euro-Atlantic area, becoming Europe’s main status quo power. But with Russia’s foreign policy revisionism, the Trump administration’s ‘America First’ turn and Brexit, pressure on Germany to maintain or reshape the existing order is likely to increase. Ever since the role it exerted as a leader in the management of the eurozone crisis, Germany has been under growing pressure to become also a more effective foreign policy actor and security provider. The article discusses these changing dynamics in Germany’s foreign and security policy and assesses the extent to which a transformation of Germany’s role as a shaper of the Euro-Atlantic order has occurred since Berlin’s political elite jointly addressed the issue in early 2014. It makes the argument that in the wake of the end of the post-war Euro-Atlantic peace and security order, Germany’s foreign and security policy is undergoing an unprecedented and substantial change. Germany seems to be on a path as Europe’s emerging strategic leader since the Ukraine crisis. This change will be closely examined in Germany’s changing bilateral relationships with Russia and the United States and the possible implications for the Euro-Atlantic order.