Jackson Janes is the President Emeritus of the American-German Institute at the Johns Hopkins University in Washington, DC, where he has been affiliated since 1989.
Dr. Janes has been engaged in German-American affairs in numerous capacities over many years. He has studied and taught in German universities in Freiburg, Giessen and Tübingen. He was the Director of the German-American Institute in Tübingen (1977-1980) and then directed the European office of The German Marshall Fund of the United States in Bonn (1980-1985). Before joining AGI, he served as Director of Program Development at the University Center for International Studies at the University of Pittsburgh (1986-1988). He was also Chair of the German Speaking Areas in Europe Program at the Foreign Service Institute in Washington, DC, from 1999-2000 and is Honorary President of the International Association for the Study of German Politics .
Dr. Janes is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, the International Institute for Strategic Studies, the Atlantic Council of the United States, and American Purpose. He serves on the advisory boards of the Berlin office of the American Jewish Committee, and the Beirat der Zeitschrift für Außen- und Sicherheitspolitik (ZfAS). He serves on the Selection Committee for the Bundeskanzler Fellowships for the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation.
Dr. Janes has lectured throughout Europe and the United States and has published extensively on issues dealing with Germany, German-American relations, and transatlantic affairs. In addition to regular commentary given to European and American news radio, he has appeared on CBS, CNN, C-SPAN, PBS, CBC, and is a frequent commentator on German television. Dr. Janes is listed in Who’s Who in America and Who’s Who in Education.
In 2005, Dr. Janes was awarded the Officer’s Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany, Germany’s highest civilian award.
Education:
Ph.D., International Relations, Claremont Graduate School, Claremont, California
M.A., Divinity School, University of Chicago
B.A., Sociology, Colgate University
Expertise:
Transatlantic relations, German-American relations, domestic German politics, German-EU relations, transatlantic affairs.
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Iran: Through the Looking Glass
As tensions rise over Iran’s nuclear ambitions, the European Union has ratcheted up its pressure on Iran with an oil embargo. Tehran is now threatening with an embargo of its own, while the United States leaves its threat of military action on the table and Israel worries about the clock running out of time to stop Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. Is 2012 the year where war becomes inevtiable? And what can Germany or the EU do to prevent it?
The President’s Pitch
Elected government leaders at any level of government are always expected to give speeches; most enjoy the chance to be on stage. With their speeches, national leaders are given roles …
The Ratings Race
In this At Issue, Executive Director Jack Janes analyzes the aftermath of last week’s string of European downgrades by Standard and Poor’s. Like their American counterparts in last August’s U.S. downgrade, European leaders seemed quick to point fingers at those they felt were responsible for the rating cuts. However, the message from Standard and Poor’s made one thing very clear: the efforts to fix the Euro crisis are still inadequate. According to Dr. Janes, the lack of political will in Europe to realize the true core of the problem is limiting the ability to reach a consensus on how to solve it.
The German President: Positioning a Platform
In this At Issue, Executive Director Jack Janes looks at the scandal surrounding Germany’s President Christian Wulff. While many are asking for the President to step down, according to Dr. Janes, Mr. Wulff can continue to hold office.
2012: A Mayan Memo for the New Year
The specter of 2012 in the Mayan calendar has been used to suggest the end of the world is near, but what is more likely to come is much of the same from 2011.
Germany: Inactive but Indispensable?
In this week’s At Issue, Executive Director Jack Janes examines the challenges Chancellor Merkel faces at home and in Europe with her style of leadership, while Germany is increasingly becoming the focus of Europe’s euro crisis.
Merkel’s Momentum
In this week’s At Issue, Executive Director Jack Janes reviews the CDU party convention in Leipzig and Angela Merkel’s political leverage as she looks forward to the second half of her second term as Chancellor.
Polish Perspectives
Following a visit to Warsaw, Executive Director Jack Janes discusses relations between Poland and both Germany and the U.S., as well as the changes in Europe which have placed Poland into an increasingly important role.
The Right Thing
In this week’s At Issue, Dr. Jackson Janes discusses the agenda around the G-20 meeting in Cannes, the role of the U.S., and the struggle to find the “right” responses to challenges on both sides of the Atlantic.
Merkel’s European Message
The results of the Brussels summit this week underline one basic somewhat contradictory fact: If the euro were to collapse, it would be because Germany was not leading the effort to save it. At the same time, if Germany does lead that effort, it will include all the criticism that goes with leadership. This is the same kind of challenge the United States has had to face for decades. If you are the only leader available, you are damned if you do and damned if you don’t. Ask anyone in the White House what that is like.
Occupy Frankfurt?
In this week’s At Issue, Executive Director Jack Janes examines the growing dissatisfaction with policy-makers and financial institutions in dealing with the current economic crisis, and how this widespread sentiment is leading populations on both sides of the Atlantic to look for a multitude of ways to vent their frustration.
The Privilege of Partnership
In this week’s At Issue, Executive Director Jack Janes discusses the increasing bonds of transatlantic interdependence — and the price and privilege which come with them.
