Transformation of Positions of the Political Parties of the Federal Republic of Germany Towards Eastern European Policy (2005-2017)

Abstract

The article researches conceptual approaches of the German political parties regarding the prospects of interaction with the Eastern European states in 2005-2017. Positions of political forces of the Federal Republic of Germany are characterized by the degree of impact of one or another party to the course of political life. The priorities in the Eastern European policy of the six main parties (CDU/CSU, SPD, FDP, “Alliance 90/The Greens”, “Left”, “Alternative for Germany”) during the reign of the second “grand” Christian-liberal coalition, and the third “grand” coalition led by Federal Chancellor A. Merkel are analysed. Almost all political forces stood for Germany’s active participation in the process of European integration. Instead, there were significant differences in the issue of relations between Germany and the Eastern European states and prospects of their joining the European Union. The CDU/CSU position was based on solving traditional problems of maximum security in Europe. The SPD strategy was based on the fact that Russia, as well as during the confrontation between blocks in the Cold War, should be the nucleus of the East European policy of the FRG. The views of the FDP in general are in line with the positions of the CDU / CSU. The “Alliance 90/The Greens” stressed the need for a pan-European security system and the further implementation of the European Neighbourhood Policy. The rhetoric of the “Left” and the representatives of the “Alternative for Germany” party was plainly pro-Russian. The author concludes that the Revolution of Dignity, the signing of the Association Agreement, the annexation of Crimea and the war in the East of Ukraine have shown the need for a revision of orientations in the Eastern European politics and the development of fundamentally new forms of interaction between Germany and the Eastern European states. To a certain extent, this trend has been reflected in the program documents and polemics on the eve of the Bundestag 2017 elections.