Henning Hoff

Already attacked as someone too soft on the likes of Bashar al-Assad, Vladimir Putin, and Xi Jinping, new CDU leader Armin Laschet’s world view and foreign policy outlook is much in line with the German mainstream.

Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer has done more than most to put Germany’s armed forces, and the country at large, on a geopolitical course.

In the Winter 2021 Issue, we look at the EU as a potential player on the world stage.

At first glance, it seems simple: whoever wins the CDU leadership in January will then become the next German chancellor. However, there are still a few obstacles on the actual path to succeed Merkel.

The election of Joe Biden has lifted the mood in Berlin. While Chancellor Angela Merkel seems focused on picking up where she left off with Barack Obama, one big idea as to what to offer the incoming US administration is taking shape: making common cause against China in the security realm.

We are launching the first issue of IPQ focused on the question of our times: the future of the transatlantic relationship.