Suchergebnisse

"This innovative volume analyzes historical, strategic and domestic political influences on the character and dynamics of the European Union's eastern enlargement. Its main focus is on interactions between Germany, Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary, in political-diplomatic, commercial-economic and socio-cultural fields. The book also examines the wider European and international contexts to show that as enlargement advanced, we also witnessed an increase in the potential for conflict among EU members, old and new. Steve Wood provides an eclectic and topical appraisal, which identifies the German state as the crucial actor in both the enlargement venture and parallel processes of bilateral reconciliation. The book is recommended to those with interests in contemporary Germany, Central and Eastern Europe, and European integration."--Provided by publisher.

AbstractThe Nord Stream 2 pipeline project to deliver gas from Russia through the Baltic Sea to Germany, and on to other parts of Europe, was a subject of unrelenting contestation. It impelled the convergence and intensification of already highly politicised domains: economics, energy, environment, conventional security, history, and values. Russian authorities, Nord Stream 2 AG and its investor consortium, and supportive politicians were opposed by governments of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Ukraine, the USA, EU institutions, and some NGOs. Germany was confronted with sharp dilemmas and remains the pivotal actor in this confluence. The responsible German ministry rescinded approval to operate the pipeline 2 days before the Russian invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022. The topic encourages interaction of materialist IPE with other branches of International Relations, comparative politics, history, and law to incorporate identity-based, normative, and geopolitical influences on nominally economic activity and policy.

AbstractThe material dimension of Russian foreign and domestic policy is accompanied by one of images and performativity. The Putin regime has affective-emotional and instrumental motives. Its main target audience is the Russian public. Its principal adversary is the United States. The decisive external audience is the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG), a pluralist entity that is also concerned with past and present images of itself. Politics in this critical international triangle is infused with theatrical, mediatized, and psychological elements, and the (re)construction of national and individual personae.

Germany benefited most from post‐war integration into liberal democratic structures, an experience that transformed it into an enthusiastic advocate of multilateralism and a model for other states. The current "illiberal turn" away from international institutions and, in some instances, international law, threatens Germany's preferred orientation. As authoritarian regimes and populisms undermine the "liberal international order" that made Germany secure and prosperous, it may be left as one of few if not the only noteworthy advocate of multilateralism in global affairs.

This article examines post-war (West) Germany's attempt to address national stigma and gain international acceptance. It surveys three domains: public relations, Foreign Cultural Policy (Auswärtige Kultur Politik) and bilateral relations with France and the United States. By the 1970s, although some images of 'Germany' were still negative, on a global scale its underlying reputation was remarkably positive. The complex of political actions involved was a pioneering example of 'nation branding'.

The German and Russian nations share a long relationship. They fought the largest part of the world's largest ever war. Resonances of that conflict and the Cold War that followed it still permeate their contemporary relationship. Under very different political systems, however, "history" is interpreted and responded to very differently. Concern for status and image, as well as geostrategic factors, motivate Russian officialdom's disputing of the "post-Cold War order." Germany is viewed as the pivotal state and nation in Europe. Russia seeks to influence Germany's civil society and political elite in the attempt to obtain favourable policy outcomes. Sympathy for the Russian position within Germany is outweighed by disquiet regarding Russian foreign policy adventurism and its authoritarian regime more generally.