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The New Parameters of German Foreign Policy
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The New Parameters of German Foreign Policy

Hans Kundnani
Transatlantic Academy, 2017
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Editorial Rating

7

Qualities

  • Controversial
  • Eye Opening
  • Background

Recommendation

The prospect of a radically changed US foreign policy under President Donald Trump has led some observers to argue that Germany will replace the United States as the “leader of the free world.” But Hans Kundnani, a fellow at the US-based think tank Transatlantic Academy, argues that the opposite will be the case: Uncertainties surrounding US security guarantees and America’s commitment to free trade will hit Germany particularly hard and undermine its leverage within the European Union. getAbstract recommends Kundnani’s sobering analysis of Germany’s prospects under the new US administration to the general reader with a stake or interest in the German economy.

Summary

US president Donald Trump’s nationalist foreign policy will have decisive consequences for Germany and its relationship with other European Union member states. Within the EU, Germany is disproportionately vulnerable to diminishing US leadership both as a security guarantor and as an advocate for free trade.

US security guarantees to Europe, which Trump has repeatedly called into question, have allowed postwar Germany to focus on building a strong economy while keeping military expenditures minimal. Germany has come to define itself as a “force for peace,” ...

About the Author

Hans Kundnani is a fellow at the German Marshall Fund and the Transatlantic Academy in Washington, DC. 

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