The Fight over the Next EU Budget
Negotiations over the next European budget, known as the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF), have exposed deep divisions among member states. So-called ‘frugal countries,’ led by Germany, Austria, and the Netherlands, …
The Macroeconomy Strikes Back at France’s G7 Summit
The mantra of “manufacturing overcapacity”—in other words, China’s unfair competitive advantage in world markets owing to heavy state and provincial subsidies—has dominated the geoeconomic narrative on either side of the …
Activism and Storytelling in Germany’s Capital
From Weimar Berlin’s queer nightlife and groundbreaking research, to Cold War activism on both sides of the Berlin Wall, to today’s institutions and activists, Berlin has long been a center …
The AfD’s New Transatlantic Network
Tracking the AfD’s Engagement with the United States As the Alternative for Germany (AfD) has gained support domestically—exemplified by 20.8 percent of the vote in the 2025 Bundestag election—they have …
Merz’s Initiative on Ukraine’s EU Membership
Will He Follow Through? Chancellor Merz sees anchoring Ukraine in Europe as a security imperative for both sides and wants to move forward quickly to do so. He will try …
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When Your Ally Is Not an Ally Anymore
Recently, the United States has seen immense turnover in policies and practices toward the LGBTQ+ community. One such reversal was the exclusion of transgender persons from the U.S. military. Alone, …
Germany and Foreign Military Intervention
With wars raging in Ukraine, the Middle East, and elsewhere, Germany is responding with seriousness and urgency. Berlin has committed to spending 3.5 percent of its GDP on defense by …
Building on Legacy
Generational Differences Within the Queer Community In 1980s Berlin, queer life existed largely in the shadows. While reforms to Paragraph 175 in 1969 and 1973 partially decriminalized sex between men, …
In Search of Reforms
Why Merz is Struggling to Put Germany on a Growth Path Those who expected the Merz government to quickly fix Germany’s sluggish economy have good reasons to be disappointed. So …
The Bundeswehr as the Center of Europe’s Conventional Forces
Germany’s new military strategy unveiled in a paper of the Federal Ministry of Defense dated April 2026 is an answer to Trump’s challenge of NATO and America’s more fundamental cultural …
Zsuzsanna Végh, DAAD/AGI Research Fellow
AGI is pleased to welcome Zsuzsanna Végh as a DAAD/AGI Research Fellow in Spring/Summer 2026. Zsuzsanna Végh is a program officer with the European Resilience program of the German Marshall …
Here Today and Gone Tomorrow
Helga Silberberg and Shanghai’s Life Lesson Under the watchful eye of the policeman, the Meyer family packed their belongings into the wooden container.[1] This intrusion into the Meyer residence was …
AGI Asks: Assessing the First Year of the Merz Government
Friedrich Merz was sworn in as Germany’s chancellor on May 6, 2025. The country faces its biggest challenges in a generation: a sluggish economy, Russia’s ongoing aggression in Ukraine, a …
U.S. Troop Withdrawal from Europe: AGI Expert Analysis in the Media
On April 29, U.S. President Donald Trump said the administration was reviewing troop numbers in Europe, and on May 1, the Pentagon announced the withdrawal of 5,000 troops from Germany. …
