For Germany’s chancellor, victory seems to be the hardest word. This reluctance appears driven by fears of geopolitical change, which he seems hesitant to shape, let alone master, and by drawing the wrong lessons from German history.
The EU’s history is closely intertwined with the fate of its automobile industry. As China’s electric vehicles take the continent by storm, Paris has put forward a balanced proposition for how to save European producers. But to really make it work, Berlin and others have to follow.
China’s military threat against Taiwan represents a direct threat to Germany’s and Europe’s security. A new China strategy needs to take this into account.
Germany’s Greens have been forced to compromise on many of their core beliefs while in government. To maintain their electoral support, they need to continue to combine pragmatism with climate-centered policies.
After seven years spent on inward-looking debates about the meaning of Brexit, the United Kingdom in its foreign policy is finally returning to its pragmatist self.
Where exactly do the European Union and the European public stand on the Taiwan issue? There is an information gap that needs closing, and the most effect method would be to increase the number of quasi-diplomatic engagements.
Germany’s new defense minister has not set a foot wrong since taking over from Christine Lambrecht in January. However, it is the outcome of the current fight over the defense budget that will likely define his time in office.
Six years after his famous Sorbonne speech, what should be Emmanuel Macron’s next big EU initiative? A case can be made for Macron continuing to push forward his “European sovereignty” paradigm. But would that entail that he is now getting serious on EU institutional reform?
Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen is traveling the Americas including a “stopover” in the United States for a meeting with US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. At the same time, the number of visits to embattled Taiwan has increased. That's not without problems.
The EU-Mercosur agreement has been dormant since 2019. However, it is the key missing piece in the EU’s approach to Latin America and the Caribbean. Its enactment would be an important sign of Brussels’ willingness to engage differently with the so-called Global South.
NATO’s eastern flank is increasingly making its voice heard when it comes to European security—but this does not translate into political influence yet. However, security dynamics are likely to change and will affect European defense integration more broadly.
For a long time, the European Union avoided external relations by concentrating on enlargement. Becoming a normal power now does not mean that it is compromising its original values, quite the opposite.
Germany’s China policy was long shaped by the country’s economic interests and the illusion that engagement could help bring about change. Beijing’s more assertive foreign policy has led to an awakening in Berlin. But how far will the German government go in redefining its relations with China?
A battle of egos between Ursula von der Leyen and Charles Michel is putting the European Union’s post-pandemic solidarity at risk. The EU’s standard-bearers should do a better job of putting policy goals ahead of personal ambition.
The Baltic States, Central Europe, France, the Nordic countries, the United Kingdom, and the United States have all reacted to Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine in their own, but often similar ways.
With the Russian economy now on a war footing, if the West wants Ukraine to prevail in the war, it will not only have to sustain the delivery of weapons but also further tighten its sanctions regime against Russia.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has brought a modicum of stability and political sobriety after the melodramas of recent years. When it comes to foreign policy, while he recognizes the challenges ahead, his room for maneuver is perilously small.
When it comes to the protests in Iran, critics ask: Where is Germany’s bold new foreign policy? They are misguided, while Berlin, in its response, seems to have forgotten three of its own principles.
Six out of 10 Germans have never heard of the term “feminist foreign policy” or don't know what it means. Therefore, the concept must be communicated in a way that is understandable to a broader public.
The concept of feminist foreign policy is flawed and needs to be broadened. Fair foreign policy is an alternative approach that could be less polarizing and achieve better outcomes.
