Merkel On the Brink? Germany at a crossroad of domestic and foreign policy change

James D. Bindenagel

University of Bonn, Center for Advanced Security, Strategy and Integration Studies

James D. Bindenagel, Senior Professor at Bonn University, is the author of “Germany From Peace to Power? Can Germany Lead in Europe without dominating?” published by Bonn University Press/Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht. He is a former U.S. Ambassador and was the founding Henry Kissinger Professor at Bonn University. His career in German-American relations includes military, diplomatic, and academic assignments in West, East, and United Germany from 1972 to 2020.

The domestic political disquiet over the refugees since the March 13 state elections in Germany has not subsided. On the contrary, the debate about German identity and the chancellor’s governance has grown more intense.

Chancellor Merkel has upset Germany’s European partners. They are wary of her curious mixture of profound ethics paired with determined self-assurance and high-handed decision making. It is increasingly hard to trust these decisions on faith alone.

In Europe, Merkel’s Germany is seen as a rising power that needs to be tied down. Her defense of German euro policy – “If the euro fails, Europe fails” – is echoed in the demand for all EU countries to accept refugees.  Continue reading at The Globalist.

Ambassador James D. Bindenagel is the Henry Kissinger Professor at the Center for International Security and Governance, Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn.