Germany’s Defense and Security Priorities under a post-Merkel Government

Presented by IISS-Americas and AGI

The rise or resurgence of revisionist, repressive and authoritarian powers threatens the Western, US-led international order upon which Germany’s post-war security and prosperity were founded. With Washington increasingly focused on China’s rise in Asia, Europe must be able to defend itself against Russia, and will depend upon German military capabilities to do so. Years of neglect and structural underfunding, however, have hollowed out Germany’s armed forces. Much of the political leadership in Berlin has not yet adjusted to new realities or appreciated the urgency with which it needs to do so. Will the arrival of Germany’s first new Chancellor in over 16 years cause Berlin to reorient its security and defense policy to meet these new realities?

Panelists
Dr. Bastian Giegerich, Director of Defence and Military Analysis, IISS
Constanze Stelzenmüller, Fritz Stern Chair and Senior Fellow, Center on the United States and Europe, The Brookings Institution

Chair
Jeff Rathke, President, American-German Institute

This hybrid event will take place Wednesday, December 8th, from 3:30 PM to 4:30 PM (EST). In-person seats will accommodate a limited audience, on a first come, first served basis. IISS looks forward to welcoming in-person attendance for those able to show proof of completed vaccination on arrival (e.g. CDC vaccination record card). Following current guidelines from the DC Mayor’s Office, all participants are expected to wear a mask during the event. If you would like to attend IN-PERSON, please RSVP here. If you would like to attend by ZOOM, please register here.

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Dr. Bastian Giegerich is the Director of Defence and Military Analysis at the IISS. Bastian leads the team that produces the annual flagship publication The Military Balance, oversees the development of the Military Balance+ online database, and contributes to research and consultancy work. From 2010-15, Bastian worked for the German Federal Ministry of Defence in research and policy roles, while also serving as an IISS consulting senior fellow for European security. Bastian is the author and editor of several books on European security and defence matters.

Jeffrey Rathke is the President of the American-German Institute at the Johns Hopkins University in Washington, DC. Prior to joining AGI, Jeff was a senior fellow and deputy director of the Europe Program at CSIS, where his work focused on transatlantic relations and U.S. security and defense policy. Jeff joined CSIS in 2015 from the State Department, after a 24-year career as a Foreign Service Officer, dedicated primarily to U.S. relations with Europe. He was director of the State Department Press Office from 2014 to 2015.

Constanze Stelzenmüller is the inaugural holder of the Fritz Stern Chair on Germany and trans-Atlantic Relations in the Center on the United States and Europe at The Brookings Institution. From March 2020 to December 2020, she was a senior fellow in the Center on the United States and Europe. She held the Kissinger Chair on Foreign Policy and International Relations at the Library of Congress from October 2019 to March 2020. She served as the inaugural Robert Bosch Senior Fellow at Brookings from 2014 to 2019. Prior to working at Brookings, she was a senior transatlantic fellow with the German Marshall Fund of the United States (GMF).

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The International Institute for Strategic Studies is an international research institute that provides objective information on military, geopolitical and geo-economic developments that could lead to conflicts. The IISS generates facts, produces analysis and exerts influence. The Defence and Military Analysis research programme is concerned with military and security policies and capabilities; defence spending, procurement and industry; and the impact of new technologies. The programme’s research activities underpin a world-leading publication, The Military Balance, and the database tool, Military Balance+.

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