Zeitenwende: What Has Been Missing From the Conversation?
Russia's war against Ukraine has sparked an active public debate about German and European security policy. But not all issues have gotten the same air time.
Recoding Tech Diplomacy into Germany’s Foreign Policy Approach
Germany’s digital tech diplomacy could use a rewrite. In its first security strategy, Berlin should focus on five key areas to fuse its tech capabilities with its foreign policy goals.
“Balancing Act”: Germany’s Role in the UN Security Council Reform
A year after the start of Russia’s war on Ukraine, the UN Security Council is more divided than ever. But even so, the body has also shown an intriguing degree of resilience in the last year. What went right and where are reforms needed? And what part does Germany have to play?
Security In a Globalized World
The climate crisis and conflicts endanger livelihoods – worldwide. What should Germany’s multilateral engagement look like to make life safer for everyone?
UNverzichtbar für die deutsche Sicherheitspolitik: Die Vereinten Nationen garantieren Frieden und Sicherheit
Nur die Vereinten Nationen sind für die Wahrung des Weltfriedens verantwortlich. Das sollte die Nationale Sicherheitsstrategie auch klar so benennen.
Zeitenwende in der deutschen Friedenspolitik: Navigationspunkte für einen politischen Kurswechsel
Im Westen nichts Neues? Damit das deutsche Engagement für Frieden und Sicherheit überzeugend ist, muss die Bundesregierung die Spielregeln für die internationale Zusammenarbeit mit politischen Akteuren des Globalen Südens neu aushandeln.
Structural Power: A Global Infrastructure Policy Should be Part of a Positive Vision for the International Order
Countries in the Global South are suffering from massive infrastructure investment gaps. Germany should spur the EU’s sluggish infrastructure policy as part of a wider effort to promote a positive vision for the international order.
Pandemic Pathogens as Biological Weapons: Revisiting German Biodefense
Catastrophic pandemics are becoming more likely. Soon, advances in biotechnology could enable thousands of individuals to create pandemic viruses from scratch and misuse them as biological weapons.
Embrace Multipolarity: Germany Must Act European for the Global Common Good
To promote a more peaceful world, Germany needs to move past primarily national strategies and start thinking European. The best way to do that: support a strong global role for the European Union.
Strengthening Resilience
Cyber-attacks, natural disasters, disinformation, and extremism: How resilient are Germany’s state and society?
The Mind Is a Battlefield: Lessons from Japan’s Security Policy on Cognitive Warfare
The cognitive domain is the new frontier of modern warfare. What are the lessons learned from Japan’s new security policy on how to thwart cognitive attacks?
“Play the Game or Be Played”: Building Tech into Germany’s National Security Strategy
Technology is coming for international relations, whether nations are ready or not – and so far, Germany is not. Why Berlin needs to start viewing its national security through a tech policy lens.
Baustellen der inneren Sicherheit: Eine Übersicht
Innere Sicherheit ist ein zentraler Bestandteil nationaler Sicherheit. Um die gesamtgesellschaftliche Resilienz zu erhöhen, müssen zuständige Organisationen verzahnter zusammenarbeiten und niedrigschwelliger Informationen austauschen.
Die resiliente Informationsgesellschaft in Zeiten digitaler Disruption
Deutschland braucht ein resilienteres Informationsökosystem und mehr Nachrichtenkompetenz. Ein probates Mittel gegen Desinformation: der Informiertheit der Gesellschaft. Diese gilt es zu erhöhen.
Murky Threats: Why Defense Against Gray-Zone Aggression Needs a Whole-of-Society Approach
As the lines between war and peace blur, so do those that define acts of aggression. Germany should learn from other countries’ efforts and invest in developing a defense against these gray-zone threats.
Capacity Building at Home: Making Germany’s Defense Fit for the Future
The country is grappling with questions of defense capability and deterrence. What should the path forward look like?
Fünf Ideen für eine bessere Bundeswehr
Deutschland braucht eine einsatzbereite und kampfstarke Truppe. Dafür muss die Bundeswehr ehrlicher planen, eigene Potenziale befähigen und realitätsnah üben.
Lehren aus der Panzerdebatte: Deutschland-Tempo statt US-Telefonjoker
Für die Enscheidung, deutsche Kampfpanzer an die Ukraine zu liefern, hat Bundeskanzler Scholz auf Gleichschritt mit den USA bestanden. Daran problematisch ist vor allem eines: dass es eine solche Rückversicherung in Zukunft nicht mehr geben wird.
Realpolitik und Panzer
Um erfolgreich gegen Putin vorzugehen, muss sich der Westen über seinen strategischen Kern einig sein: Was steht im Krieg in der Ukraine auf dem Spiel und welche Eskalationsgefahr geht von Panzerlieferungen aus?
Germany Needs a National Directive on Autonomy in Weapon Systems
The international effort to regulate autonomy in weapon systems via the United Nations in Geneva is stuck. It is time for Germany to develop and implement its own national directive – and foster regulatory processes in new fora.
Podcast
Krisen von morgen: A Podcast
What are Germany and the EU doing to better predict war and violence? And can we use data today to tell where in the world things will go wrong tomorrow?
Crises Abroad: Prevention, Response, Stabilization
The German government has pledged to to do more in terms of crisis engagement, and to do it better. How should its new National Security Strategy reflect that?
Schluss mit dem Autopiloten! Gute Krisenpolitik fährt nicht von allein
Wirksamere Stabilisierung und Friedensförderung erfordert die Priorisierung erfolgversprechender Fälle, mehr Mut zu Konfrontation und Blockaden im Apparat abzubauen. Das kostet Geld, doch sonst verpuffen die Millionen.
Germany’s Cognitive Dissonance on Security Assistance: A Barrier to Better Protecting Civilians
Germany’s engagement in crisis contexts lacks an overarching vision – but without a vision, no mid-level policies and no policy architecture that would allow Berlin to manage the dilemmas of engaging in difficult environments and reduce the risk of causing unintended harm.
Germany’s Role as a Global Leader in Stabilization
Stabilization can be one of the most effective ways to help countries prevent or emerge from violent conflict. Germany already leads the way – and should expand on this role with its new security strategy.
German Security Policy in Africa: New Enemy, Same Mistakes?
Despite the rising power competition with Russia in Africa, Western countries should avoid repeating their mistakes of past counter-terrorism and stabilization campaigns. How threat inflation and no-strings-attached security assistance hinders the chances for peace.
How to Design a National Security Strategy with Peace in Mind
Germany’s security will be decided in the international arena and secured through transformative approaches to conflict resolution. To draft a successful and worthy strategy, Berlin will need to approach it with a global peace mindset.
Ein Anfang, nicht das Ende: Die Nationale Sicherheitsstrategie als Auftakt eines regelmäßigen Strategiezyklus
Die Nationale Sicherheitsstrategie sollte der erste Impuls zur Entwicklung eines nachhaltigen strategischen Ökosystems in Deutschland sein. Als Vorbild dienen die Niederlande.
Multilateraler Input: Integrierte Sicherheit muss Gesellschaft und internationale Partner einbinden
Eine nachhaltige Zeitenwende braucht nicht nur eine Revision der Strategiebildung, sondern auch mehr strategische Re-Vision. Helfen können dabei Perspektivwechsel durch Input von Gesellschaft, Wissenschaft und internationalen Partnern.
Kein Selbstläufer: Der notwendige Wandel Deutschlands strategischer Kultur
Deutschland muss mehr Strategie wagen. Für den geforderten Wandel der strategischen Kultur brauchen Politiker:innen jetzt Mut zur offenen Kommunikation und aktiven Gestaltung.
A little more conversation: Nur Mut zur strategischen Kommunikation
Wo sich Elvis mehr Ruhe erbeten hat, braucht Deutschland das genaue Gegenteil: mehr strategische Kommunikation. Denn StratKom stärkt die Resilienz in Demokratien und ihre Stimme auf globaler Ebene.
Rethinking Interdependence
Greater interdependencies used to mean more security. But how should politics and business shape economic ties in today’s world?
“Chips or Not, EU Need to Mind Your Own Biscuits”: Why Europe Must Up Its Economic Weight
The recent paradigm shift in US export controls should be a rallying call for Europeans to reassess their own geo-economic doctrine. Only if the EU boosts its global market power can it assume a more favorable position vis-à-vis China.
Securing Supply Chains for the Low-Carbon Economy: The Case of Electric Batteries
The transition to low-carbon technologies is creating new dependencies for the European economy. Especially critical for Germany: electric batteries. To reduce risks and reshape emerging global value chains, Berlin and other EU governments must prioritize a comprehensive governance approach.
Fairness und Transparenz im Wissenschaftsaustausch mit China
Trotz Herausforderungen des ‚Dual-Use‘ von Forschungsergebnissen und gefährlichen Asymmetrien profitieren wir von der wissenschaftlichen Zusammenarbeit mit China. Warum sich Deutschland für die eigenen Interessen einsetzen sollte, um eine Win-Win-Beziehung zu schaffen.
Economic Zeitenwende? Lessons from Japan’s Economic Security Policy
Reducing its dependencies will be an important task for Germany’s first-ever National Security Strategy. Japan’s pioneering policy of economic security can offer a number of lessons for Berlin.
Reality Check on China: Protecting Europe’s Science and Technology Potential
Many European states believe that they are no match for China. But as the French example reveals, this perception may be false. It is high time for Europe to take a realistic look at its dependencies and assets vis-à-vis China – especially in the field of science and technology.
Big Picture: Key Priorities for Germany's National Security Strategy
Strategies are about the long view. What are the big questions that Germany’s government needs to answer?
Why Southeast Asia Matters for German National Security
Beyond its fame as a tropical touristic destination, Southeast Asia is a key partner on security. As Berlin crafts its upcoming National Security Strategy, it should focus on building bridges in the region.
German Feminist Foreign Policy: An Inside-Outside Perspective
Germany is keen on developing a feminist foreign policy – but so far, this initiative excludes many important perspectives. How Berlin can create a genuinely inclusive foreign policy that is less anthropocentric and more climate-friendly.
Arm for the Storm: Germany’s New Security Strategy
Germany’s National Security Strategy should aim for more than just a return to the status quo ante but with more money. The Zeitenwende is forcing Germany to reinvent itself as a European security actor.
Canada and Germany: Partners in Defending a Shared Approach to International Security
With militarized nationalism and anti-internationalist sentiments on the rise again, Canada and Germany should work together to forge a more effective and inclusive multilateral system – one built on democratic solidarity.
How to Trump-Proof Germany’s National Security Strategy
The Biden administration may make for a soothing partner, but it will not be in office forever. Instead of fretting over Trumpism, Berlin should accept its power to improve ties with Washington regardless of who moves into the White House next.