Zeitenwende as a foreign policy identity crisis: Germany and the travails of adaptation after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine

Abstract

Listen

Translate article

While Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine represented a shock to countries across Europe, it was perceived as a particularly fundamental challenge in Germany – a ‘ Zeitenwende’ as Chancellor Olaf Scholz called it. This article argues that the Russian invasion undermined widely shared foreign policy ideas, triggering a foreign policy identity crisis. This crisis allowed for significant ideational change and decisions previously considered unattainable. However, other elements of Germany’s foreign policy identity have proven to be remarkably resilient, shaping the response across various policy areas. The absence of a new consensus that could be linked to other elements of the German collective identity has slowed adaptation in some areas and allowed opponents to push back. While German foreign policy has changed significantly since the beginning of the invasion, additional adaptation will not be as swift and extensive as many of Berlin’s partners would like and as the changing security environment arguably demands.