AGI

Foreign Policy

Today, Germany stands at the center of Europe and is the most influential member of the European Union. Germany is a key partner of the U.S. in its most important international relationships. There is no other country with which the U.S. shares a stronger mix of interests and values on twenty-first century challenges.
Reset

Nele Marianne Ewers-Peters, DAAD/AGI Research Fellow

AGI is pleased to welcome Dr. Nele Marianne Ewers-Peters as a DAAD/AGI Research Fellow in Fall 2025. Dr. Nele Marianne Ewers-Peters is Assistant Professor for European Security at the Faculty …

Episode 134: Europe’s Strategic Dependencies

The dynamics of the transatlantic relationship are changing. As Europe faces the changing policies of the United States toward its alliances, Germany is investing in its armed forces at a …

Chancellor Merz’s Key Choices on German Foreign and Security Policy

This is the second of a three-part series addressing German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s approach to foreign and security policy and initial actions, the key issues Merz faces through the end …

The Case for a German Grand Strategy

The early morning hours of February 24, 2022, shocked many German citizens and politicians. War on the European continent had been perceived as a relic of the past; the notion …

Episode 133: The SPD and Its Foreign Policy Challenges

The center-left Social Democrats are the junior coalition partner in Friedrich Merz’s government, but they hold two of the most important portfolios for implementing Germany’s security policy revolution known as …

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s Foreign Policy Approach

This is the first of a three-part series addressing German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s approach to foreign and security policy, initial achievements, the key issues Merz faces through the end of …

AGI Profiles: Jens Hanefeld

German Ambassador to the United States Jens Hanefeld took up the role as Germany’s ambassador to the United States on August 8, 2025. He replaces Ambassador Andreas Michaelis, who retired …

Jakob Hensing, DAAD/AGI Research Fellow

AGI is pleased to welcome Jakob Hensing as a DAAD/AGI Research Fellow in Fall 2025. His permanent position is at the Global Public Policy Institute (GPPi) in Berlin, where he …

The Secret of Strobe Talbott’s and Bill Clinton’s Friendship

New Insight from Strobe Talbott’s Diaries Senior staff turnovers within the White House or the executive branch are not uncommon. There are many reasons, including firing, exhaustion, overwork, political loyalty, …

A Zeitenwende in Germany’s Israel Policy?

Former Chancellor Angela Merkel’s 2008 speech in the Israeli Knesset set a lasting foreign policy precedent by declaring that Israel’s security was a matter of German Staatsräson—a fundamental German “reason …

Episode 130: Germany’s Transatlantic Coordinator on U.S.-German Relations

Germany’s defense commitments are beginning to match the ambitions of the Zeitenwende, and Germany’s increased investments in European security are being noted in Washington. In his first visit to the …

Strobe Talbott and the Rise of the Liberal Post-Cold War Order

Currently, we are witnessing enormous stress on the institutions established in the post-Cold War era. A new era of great power competition and a revival of authoritarianism threaten to undermine …

Germany is Back

Chancellor Merz, Defense Investment, and the NATO Summit Since Russia’s first invasion of Ukraine more than eleven years ago, German leaders have struggled to find a fitting response to the …

Chancellor Merz and Germany’s ‘New Determination’

In a June 24 address to the German parliament, Chancellor Friedrich Merz delivered a Regierungserklärung (government declaration) that highlighted a profound shift in Germany’s strategic outlook, characterized by what he …