Portal de Periódicos da CAPES

Germany: A ‘Normal’ Global Actor?

2009; Routledge; Volume: 18; Issue: 1 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1080/09644000802649304

1743-8993

Regina Karp,

European Union Policy and Governance

Abstract Liberal-idealist and constructivist approaches to German foreign and security policy share a rejection of power politics and a 'normalisation' of the use of force. Wedded to a 'civilian power' lens, these approaches cannot explain actual policy in terms other than a re-socialisation into power politics or a decline of Germany's normative preferences. This paper argues that these approaches no longer adequately reflect the choices German leaders face. They confine analysis to normatively acceptable forms of power and structural frameworks that are increasingly in flux. As a result, they are unable to explain the impact of systemic transformation on German foreign policy and lack the analytical tools to incorporate systemic change. This paper proposes instead that a different, and more accurate, conclusion can be reached if we reassess how power, norms and structure interact in shaping German foreign policy choices. What we find is that Germany is actively engaged in developing an approach to foreign policy-making that takes account of the structural transformations in Europe and beyond and its legacy of strong normative convictions. Notes James Sperling, 'The Foreign Policy of the Berlin Republic: The Very Model of a Post-Modern Major Power? A Review Essay', German Politics 12/3 (Dec. 2003), pp.1–34. For examples see Volker Rittberger (ed.), German Foreign Policy since Unifcation: Theories and Case Studies (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2001); Sebastian Harnisch and Hanns W. Maull, Germany as a Civilian Power? The Foreign Policy of the Berlin Republic (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2001); Henning Tewes, Germany, Civilian Power and the New Europe (New York: Palgrave, 2002). Andrew Linklater, 'What is a Good International Citizen?' in Paul Keal (ed.), Ethics and Foreign Policy (Canberra: Allen and Unwin, 1992), cited in Karen E. Smith, Still 'Civilian Power EU?' European Foreign Policy Unit Working Paper 2005/1, available at http://www.arena.uio.no/cidel/WorkshopOsloSecurity/Smith.pdf (accessed 10 June 2007). Sperling, 'The Foreign Policy of the Berlin Republic', pp.23–4. Simon J. Bulmer, 'Shaping the Rules? The Constitutive Politics of the European Union', in Peter Katzenstein (ed.), Tamed Power: Germany in Europe (Ithaca, NY and London: Cornell University Press, 1997), pp.49–79; Simon Bulmer, Charlie Jeffery and William E. Paterson, Germany's European Diplomacy: Shaping the Regional Milieu (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2000), pp.2–18. Bulmer et al., Germany's European Diplomacy, p.13. Ibid., pp.13–14. Bulmer, 'Shaping the Rules?', p.76. Ibid. Sperling, 'The Foreign Policy of the Berlin Republic', p.6. Peter Katzenstein (ed.), Tamed Power: Germany in Europe (Ithaca, NY and London: Cornell University Press, 1997), p.304. William E. Paterson, Does Germany still have a European Vocation?, European Research Working Papers Series, Number 15 (Birmingham University, European Research Institute, 2006), p.18. Adrian Hyde-Price's work supports the notion of German and European mutual constitutiveness, especially evident in his assessment of both Europe and Germany having entered a post-Westphalian evolution. Adrian Hyde-Price, Germany and European Oder. Enlarging NATO and the EU (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2000). Interestingly though, his recent work shows that mutual constitution is not limited to constructivist perspectives but includes similar processes also from a realist perspective. His point is to demonstrate the mutually constitutive nature of the German–European relationship which is not beholden to any one theoretical perspective. For example, see Adrian Hyde-Price, '"Normative" Power Europe: A Realist Critique', Journal of European Public Policy 13/2 (March 2006), pp.217–34; Adrian Hyde-Price, 'A "Tragic Actor"? A Realist Perspective on "Ethical Power Europe"', International Affairs 84/1 (2008), pp.29–44. Charlie Jeffery, 'Germany and Europe: a Shifting Vocation?', Luncheon Address, German Studies Association, San Diego, 6 Oct. 2007, German Studies Association Newsletter 32/2 (Winter 2007–08), p.44. Paterson, Does Germany still have a European Vocation?, p.18. Anne Marie Le Gloannec, Germany's Power and the Weakening of States in a Globalized World (Paris: Cahiers Europeens de Sciences Po 3, 2001). Gunther Hellmann et al., 'De-Europeanization by Default? Germany's EU Policy in Defense and Asylum', Foreign Policy Analysis 1/1 (March 2005), pp.160–61. Beverly Crawford, Power and German Foreign Policy. Embedded Hegemony in Europe (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2007), p.54. Sperling, 'The Foreign Policy of the Berlin Republic', p.14. Thomas Bulmahn and Ruediger Fiebig, 'Erste Ergebnisse der Bevölkerungsbefragung 2007 des Sozialwissenschaftlichen Instituts der Bundeswehr', SOWI.NEWS 4 (2007), pp. 1–9. Robert Kagan, Of Paradise and Power. America and Europe in the New World Order (New York: Alfred. A. Knopf, 2003). Crawford, Power and German Foreign Policy, p.34. Hans-Peter Schwarz, Die gezähmten Deutschen. Von der Machtbesessenheit zur Machtvergessenheit, 2nd ed. (Stuttgart: Deutsche Verlagsanstalt, 1985). Hanns Maull (ed.), Germany's Uncertain Power. Foreign Policy of the Berlin Republic (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2006). The term 'civilian power' was initially introduced into the German foreign policy discourse by Hanns Maull, 'Germany and Japan: The New Civilian Powers', Foreign Affairs 69/5 (Winter 1990/91), pp.91–106. The idea of civilian forms of power was coined by Francois Duchene in connection with his work on the nature of an emerging European polity. See François Duchene, 'Europe's Role in World Peace', in Robert Mayne (ed.), Europe Tomorrow: Sixteen Europeans Look Ahead (London: Fontana, 1972), pp.32–47; and Francois Duchene, 'The European Community and the Uncertainties of Interdependence', in Max Kohnstamm and Wolfgang Hager (eds.), A Nation Writ Large? Foreign Policy Problems Before the Community (London: Macmillan, 1973), pp.1–21. Ian Manners, 'The European Union as a Normative Power: A Response to Thomas Diez', Millennium: Journal of International Studies 35/1 (2006), pp.167–80; here p.176. Ian Manners, 'Normative Power Europe: A Contradiction in Terms?', Journal of Common Market Studies 40/2 (2002), pp.235–58; here p.241. Maull, 'Germany and Japan: The New Civilian Powers', pp.91–106; Rittberger, German Foreign Policy since Unification; Katzenstein, Tamed Power. Thomas Berger, 'Norms, Identity and National Security in Germany and Japan', in Peter Katzenstein (ed.), The Culture of National Security. Norms and Identity in World Politics (New York: Columbia University Press, 1996); John Duffield, World Power Forsaken. Political Culture, International Institutions, and German Security Policy after Unification (Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 1998). Catherine Kelleher, Germany and the Politics of Nuclear Weapons (New York: Columbia University Press, 1975). Scott Erb, German Foreign Policy. Navigating a New Era (London: Lynn Rienner, 2003), p.229. Manners, 'Normative Power Europe: A Contradiction in Terms?', pp.235–58; Helene Sjursen (ed.), Civilian or Military Power? European Foreign Policy in Perspective (London: Routledge, 2007); Thomas Dietz, 'Constructing the Self and Changing Others: Reconsidering 'Normative Power Europe', Millennium: Journal of International Studies 33/3 (2005), pp.613–36. Ian Manners, 'Normative Power Europe Reconsidered: Beyond the Crossroads', in Helen Sjursen (ed.), Civilian or Military Power?, pp.15–31. Hyde-Price, '"Normative" Power Europe', p.227. Helga Haftendorn, Coming of Age. German Foreign Policy since 1945 (London: Rowman & Littlefield, 2006); Christian Hacke, Weltmacht Wider Willen? Die Außenpolitik der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, 2nd ed. (Berlin: Ullstein, 1993); Joachim Krause, 'Multilaterale Ordnung oder Hegemonie? Zur transatlantischen Debatte über die weltpolitische Neuordnung', Aus Politik und Zeitgeschichte, Beilage zur Wochenzeitung 'Das Parlament', B 31–32/28 (July 2003), pp.6–14; Egon Bahr, Deutsche Interessen. Streitschrift zu Macht, Sicherheit und Außenpolitik (Munich: Blessing, 1998). Bahr, Deutsche Interessen, p.20. Ibid., p.18. Christian Hacke, 'Mehr Bismarck, weniger Habermas', Internationale Politik 61/6 (2006), pp.68–76; here p.75. Hyde-Price, 'A "Tragic Actor"?', pp.37–8. Gunther Hellman and Ulrich Roos, 'Von Windhunden und Hasen. Warum Deutschland aus dem Rennen um Staendige Sitze im UN-Sicherheitsrat aussteigen sollte', Internationale Politik 62/10 (2007), pp.92–8; here p.94. Gunther Hellmann, Wider die machtpolitische Resozialisierung der deutschen Außenpolitik. Ein Plädoer für offensiven Idealismus, available at http://web.uni-frankfurt.de/fb3/mat/Welttrends_2004_Anm.pdf (electronic version 2005, accessed 15 June 2007). Hanns Maull, 'Nationale Interessen! Aber was sind sie?', Internationale Politik 61/10 (2006), pp.62–76; here p.76. Joschka Fischer, Risiko Deutschland. Krise und Zukunft der deutschen Politik (Cologne: Kiepenheuer and Witsch, 1994), pp.229–30. Lisbeth Aggestam, What Role for the EU in Security and Defense? British, French and German Views of the ESDP (Stockholm: Swedish Institute of International Affairs, 2006), pp.23, 28. 'Gates Warns of Two-tier NATO', Financial Times, 7 Feb. 2008, available at http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/1e505e66-d54b-11dc-8b56-0000779fd2ac.html (accessed 3 March 2008); 'Merkel Attacks NATO Debate on Kabul', Financial Times, 19 Feb. 2008, available at http://www.ft.com/cms/s.0/a382d1d4-de7b-11dc-9de3-0000779fd2ac.html (accessed 3 March 2008); 'Condoleezza Rice Pushes NATO Allies to Increase Afghanistan Contributions', International Herald Tribune, 6 March 2008, available at http://iht.com/articles/2008/03/06/europe/nato/php (accessed 7 March 2008). Franz-Josef Meiers, Zu Neuen Ufern? Die Deutsche Sicherheits- und Verteidigungspolitik in einer Welt des Wandels, 1990–2000 (Paderborn: Ferdinand Schöningh, 2006). Hellmann, Wider die machtpolitische Resozialisierung. Duffield, World Power Forsaken; Hanns Maull, 'Germany and the Use of Force: Still a Civilian Power?', Survival 42/2 (2000), pp.56–80; Harnisch and Maull, Germany – Still a Civilian Power?; Maull, Germany's Uncertain Power; Kerry Longhurst, Germany and the Use of Force (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2004); Anja Dalgaard-Nielsen, Germany, Pacifism and Peace Enforcement (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2006); Meiers, Zu Neuen Ufern? Hellmann, Wider die machtpolitische Resozialisierung. Gerhard Schöder, 'Für eine kooperative Weltordung', Internationale Politik 58/9 (2003), pp.13–18. Elizabeth Pond, Friendly Fire. The Near-Death of the Transatlantic Alliance (Washington, DC: Brookings Institution Press, 2004). Peter Rudolf, 'The Myth of the "German Way": German Foreign Policy and Transatlantic Relations', Survival 47/1 (2005), pp.133–52. Regina Karp, 'The New German Foreign Policy Consensus', The Washington Quarterly 29/1 (2005), pp.61–82. Maull, Germany's Uncertain Power, see especially introduction and conclusion. Otfried Nassauer, 'Militärmacht Deutschland?', WeltTrends 54 (2007), available at http://www.bis.de/public/articles/welttrends54.htm (accessed 20 July 2007). Federal Ministry of Defence, Einsatzzahlen – Die Stärke der deutschen Einsatzkontingente, 12 March 2007, available at http://www.bundeswehr.de/portal/a/bwde/kcxml/04_Sj9SPykssy0xPLMnMz0vM0Y_QjzKLd4w3DPIESYGZbn76kTCxoJRUfV-P_NxUfW_9AP2C3IhyR0dFRQAwE36W/delta/base64xml/L3dJdyEvd0ZNQUFzQUMvNElVRS82X0FfMVJQ (accessed 14 March 2007). Sabine Rosenbladt, 'Auslandseinsätze', Editorial, Internationale Politik 62/5 (2007), p.1. Timo Noetzel and Benjamin Schreer, 'Krieg oder Nicht-Krieg', Internationale Politik 62/4 (2007), pp.100–105; Jochen Thies, 'Dabei ohne Debatte', Internationale Politik 62/2 (2007), pp.110–14; Lothar Ruhl, 'Nicht die Heilsarmee', Internationale Politik 62/3 (2007), pp.106–11. Hessische Stiftung für Friedens-und Konfliktforschung, Friedensgutachten 2007, Frankfurt, Press Release, 14 June 2007. Felix Berenskoetter, 'Profiling Germany', Review Essay, Cooperation and Conflict 42/2 (2007), pp.229–34, here p.321. Hyde-Price, 'A "Tragic Actor"?', p.29. Henning Riecke (ed.), Die Transformation der NATO. Die Zukunft der euro-atlantischen Sicherheitskooperation (Baden-Baden: Nomos, 2007). John Mearsheimer, 'Back to the Future: Instability in Europe after the Cold War', International Security 15/1 (1990), pp.5–56. Thomas Risse-Kappen, 'Collective Identity in a Democratic Community: The Case of NATO', in Katzenstein (ed.), The Culture of National Security, pp.357–99. I use the term unipolarity to indicate the singular role played by the United States in international relations. Others may strife to contest this role but what the United States does or not does remains critical for the choices of others. William Wohlforth, 'The Transatlantic Dimension', in Roland Dannreuther (ed), European Foreign and Security Policy. Towards a Neigbourhood Strategy (London: Routledge, 2004), pp.186–201, especially pp.189–90. William Wallace, 'A Rational Partnership in a Post-Atlantic World', in Marcin Zaborowski (ed.), Friends Again? EU–US Relations After the Crisis, (Paris: European Union Institute for Security Studies, Transatlantic Book, 2006), pp.47–53; Ronald Asmus, 'A Dissenting Voice on the Values and Interests Gap', in Zaborowski (ed.), Friends Again?, pp.55–61. Gerhard Schröder, Speech at the 41st Munich Security Policy Conference, 12 Feb. 2005, available at http://www.securityconference.de/konferenzen/rede.php?menu_2005=&menu_konferenzen=&sprache=en&id=143& (accessed 20 Feb. 2005). John Vincour, 'A Dilemma of Distance in German Approach', International Herald Tribune, 3 July 2007. Thomas Mowle and David Sacko, 'Global NATO: Bandwagoning in a Unipolar World', Contemporary Security Policy 28/3 (2007), pp. 597–618; William Wohlforth, 'The Transatlantic Dimension', in Dannreuther (ed.), European Foreign and Security Policy. Mowle and Sacko, 'Global NATO'. Ivo Daalder and James Goldgeier, 'Global NATO', Foreign Affairs 85/5 (2006), pp. 105–113; Tom Lantos, Opening Remarks of Chairman Lantos at Hearing, The Future of NATO: How Valuable an Asset? Committee on Foreign Affairs, U.S. House of Representatives, 22 June 2007; Mowle and Sacko, 'Global NATO'. Helga Haftendorn, 'Atlantische Klimaverbesserung. Aber keine Rückkehr zu den "good old days"', Internationale Politik 61/1 (2006), pp.96–7. Helga Haftendorn, 'Transatlantic Stress. Power and Vision Asymmetries Complicate US–EU Relations', Internationale Politik, Global Issues (Spring, 2008), p.71. Ibid., p.72. Sebastian Kurpas and Henning Riecke, Is Europe Back on Track? Impetus from the German EU Presidency, CEPS Working Document NO. 273, July 2007 (Brussels: Centre for European Policy Studies). Wolfgang Wagner, 'Why the EU's Common Foreign and Security Policy will Remain Intergovernmental: A Rationalist Institutionalist Analysis of European Crisis Management', Journal of European Public Policy 10/4 (August 2003), pp.576–95. Lisbeth Aggestam, What Role for the EU in Security and Defense?, p.28. Bernard Kouchner, 'Keeping the Peace', International Herald Tribune, 10 March 2008, available at http://www.iht.com/bin/printfriendly.php?id=10878371 (accessed 10 March 2008). Joschka Fischer, Speech at 40th Munich Conference on Security Policy, 7 Feb. 2004. Walther Steinmeier, Auf dem Weg zu einer europäischen Ostpolitik. Die Beziehungen Deutschlands und der EU zu Russland und den östlichen Nachbarn, Speech at Willy-Brandt-Stiftung, 4 March 2008, Auswärtiges Amt, Berlin. G8 Summit Strengthens the UN Climate Process, Press Release, Bundesministerium für Umwelt, 7 June 2007, available at http://www.bmu.de/english/current_press_release/pm/39511 (accessed 11 March 2008); Erfolg fur Umwelt, Klima und Innovationen. Minister Gabriell zieht positive Bilanz der EU-Ratsprasidentschaft, Pressemitteilungen Nr.286/07, Bundesministerium für Umwelt, 29 June 2007, available at http://www.bmu.de/pressemitteilungen/aktuelle_pressemitteilungen/pm/39598 (accessed 11 March 2008). 'Bundesaußenminister Steinmeier anlässlich des Workshops zur Multilateralisierung des Brennstoffkreislaufes', Auswaertiges Amt, Berlin, 10 Oct. 2007, available at http://www.auswaertiges-amt.de/diplo/de/Infoservice/Presse/Reden/2007/071010-BM-Brennstoffkreislauf.html (accessed 13 March 2008); 'Bundesregierung wirbt für Multilateralisierung des atomaren Brennstoffkreislaufs', Auswärtiges Amt, Berlin, 19 Feb. 2008, available at http://auswaertiges-amt.de/diplo/de/Infoservice/Presse/Meldungen/2008/080219-Brennstoffkreislauf.html (accessed 13 March 2008). Peter Bender, 'Deutsche Aussenpolitik: Vernunft und Schwäche', Das Parlament. Aus Politik und Zeitgeschichte 43, 20 Oct. 2008, available at http://www.bundestag.de/cgibin/druck.pl?N=parlament (accessed 21 Oct. 2008). Crawford, Power and German Foreign Policy, p.34. Michael Williams, Culture and Security. Symbolic Power and the Politics of International Security (London: Routledge, 2007), p.2. Harald Muller, 'Germany and the Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction', in Maull (ed.), Germany's Uncertain Power, pp.49–65. 'The Berlin Stonewall. Has Germany replaced France as America's Awkward Ally?', The Economist, 1 Nov. 2008, pp.59–60.