Zeitenwende | Wendezeiten
Special Edition of the Munich Security Report on German Foreign and Security Policy
30 years after German unification, the Federal Republic is confronted with enormous challenges. Europe's security is threatened, Europe's democracies are on the defensive. The special edition of the Munich Security Report "Zeitenwende | Wendezeiten" provides an overview of the state of German foreign and security policy six years after the "Munich consensus".
At the Munich Security Conference 2014, then Federal President Joachim Gauck, Federal Minister of Foreign Affairs Frank-Walter Steinmeier, and Federal Minister of Defense Ursula von der Leyen articulated a message that was later called the "Munich consensus": Germany was ready to bear "more responsibility" in international affairs and wanted to meet security policy challenges "earlier, more decisively, and more substantially."
Six years later, we find ourselves amid a Zeitenwende, the turn of an era in world politics, in which almost every fundamental certainty of German foreign policy is dissolving. Characteristics of the new environment include the weakening of an international order built up over decades, the rise of China, and a return to power politics that defies international norms. Besides, climate change and rapid technological transition are having drastic consequences.
These developments are exacerbated by a gradual reorientation of the United States, which goes back further than 2016. Washington's relative position of power has weakened. The United States is now both less able to be a guarantor of the international order and less willing to make overproportionate contributions. Under President Trump, it no longer sees the preservation of the rule-based order and its institutions as a priority either. Germany, which has settled down in the US-dominated order like hardly any other country, is even more affected by the erosion of the liberal international order than other states.
Map published as part of this special edition; Illustration by the Munich Security Conference based on Federal Foreign Office, „Auslandsvertretungen,“ September 27, 2019, https://perma.cc/2XS9-YJL8, and data provided by the Federal Foreign Office; Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, „Länderliste für die bilaterale staatliche Entwicklungszusammenarbeit des BMZ,“ May 2020, https://perma.cc/8YRM-GLTX; Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, „Reformkonzept ‚BMZ 2030‘: Umdenken – Umsteuern,“ June 2020, https://perma.cc/MT9U-WBLE, 7f, Note that Germany, as part of multilateral, European, and non-governmental cooperation, continues to support all countries of the OECD/DAC list; German Chambers of Commerce Abroad, „Unsere Standorte,“ https://perma.cc/GTW3-MEQP; Deutscher Industrie- und Handelskammertag e. V., „AHK-Jahresbericht 2019,“ May 2019, https://perma.cc/4A7Z-A5AB; Goethe Institute, „Institute weltweit,“ https://perma.cc/U8NX-VX82, as well as data provided by the Goethe Institute; Bundeswehr, „Wie lauten die Einsatzzahlen?“ July 20, 2020, https://perma.cc/CV38-9VCR; Bundeswehr, „Aktuelle Einsätze der Bundeswehr,“ November 2019, https://perma.cc/DAD4-L4RT; Bundeswehr, „Abgeschlossene Einsätze der Bundeswehr,“ https://perma.cc/WP4H-HPX9; Deutscher Bundestag, „Unterrichtung durch den Wehrbeauftragten: Jahresbericht 2019 (61. Bericht),“ Drucksache 19/16500, https://perma.cc/3ANC-N2QZ; Federal Ministry of Defense, „Bericht des Bundesministeriums der Verteidigung zu den Zusatzausgaben für Maßnahmen der Bundeswehr im Zusammenhang mit internationalen Einsätzen im Jahr 2019,“ May 13, 2020, provided by the Federal Ministry of Defense. The boundaries shown on this map are not intended to be exhaustive and do not imply official endorsement. Includes closed offices; branch offices are not listed separately.
Can Germany keep up with the changes in the global order?
Even though Germany has significantly increased its efforts in many areas of foreign and security policy in the aftermath of the "Munich consensus", Germany's engagement often falls short of both the expectations of its most valued partners and the demands of its strategic environment.
The special edition of the Munich Security Report "Zeitenwende | Wendezeiten" provides analyses and new ideas for a German foreign and security policy that is already changing - and is yet in danger of not being able to keep up with the speed of global change.
Germany must continue to enhance its strategic culture and its decision-making structures in foreign policy to be prepared for these new challenges. This is a precondition for the Federal Republic to become the "Enabling Power" of the European Union, capable of empowering the EU to use its weight more effectively on the global stage. (Read more about the "Enabling Power" Germany in our recently published Munich Security Brief.)
About this MSR Special Edition "Zeitenwende | Wendezeiten"
The report offers several exclusive and previously undisclosed contributions, including the results of a survey conducted by forsa, on behalf of the MSC, on the opinions of the German population on foreign and security policy.
The Munich Security Conference would like to thank the Press and Information Office of the Federal Government of Germany for generously funding part of this project, as well as the Federal Foreign Office, the Federal Ministry of Defence, and the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development for sharing insights and providing data. In addition, about three dozen high-ranking decision-makers from Germany and abroad have made a significant contribution to this report through confidential background discussions and insightful perceptions.
Furthermore, the MSC has once more cooperated with a number of renowned organizations for this report, including the Bertelsmann Foundation, the Centre for International Security (Hertie School), eupinions, forsa, Gallup, the Goethe Institute, the ifo Institute, the Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW), the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) and the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).
About Munich Security Report Special Editions
The Munich Security Report Special Editions complement the Munich Security Report, which is annually published in February ahead of the Munich Security Conference. Each MSR Special Edition is dedicated to an essential and current topic of international foreign and security policy. This special edition "Zeitenwende | Wendezeiten" on German foreign and security policy is the first such publication, which will be followed at occasional intervals by further issues in the future.
