Historian and political scientist Herfried M\u00fcnkler recently summed up what he sees as the core foreign policy problem for Germany’s government: “The liberal idealism of a rules-based international order has turned out to be an illusion.”<\/p>\n
At the same time, the government continues to view the preservation of multilateralism and a rules\u2011based international order as its overarching goal. Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul<\/a>, of the conservative Christian Democrats (CDU)<\/a>,\u00a0warned that “China and Russia are attempting to rewrite the international order that is based on international law.”<\/p>\n CDU Chancellor Friedrich Merz<\/a> said the rules\u2011based order was not only being called into question by governments long considered authoritarian. “Unfortunately, this also applies to America,” he said, referring to President Donald Trump<\/a>. A recent US strategy paper sharply criticizing European allies and the EU has reinforced this impression.<\/p>\n ‘Pressure on Europeans’<\/p>\n A major concern among German political and military leaders is that the United States may be distancing itself from Europe<\/a> on security matters. In early December, General Christian Freuding told the magazine\u00a0The Atlantic\u00a0that direct contact with his US counterparts had been “cut off.”<\/p>\n In the past, Freuding told the magazine, communication had been possible “day and night.” He called\u00a0the loss of rapid-contact channels a “warning sign” \u2014 especially in light of the potential for an\u00a0attack by Russia on eastern NATO<\/a> states.<\/p>\n Germany’s high-stakes EU gamble over Russia<\/p>\n To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video<\/a><\/p>\n Europeans are also feeling the consequences of the US’s shift in policy on Ukraine<\/a>. Trump sought a peace arrangement that would accommodate many of the\u00a0demands made by\u00a0Russian President Vladimir Putin<\/a>. And the US security strategy released in late 2025 sought “strategic stability” with Russia \u2014 to the dismay of governments elsewhere in Europe.<\/p>\n “If it comes to the point that the Americans somehow bow out, the pressure on Europeans to be capable of acting and to form a strong counterweight will increase once again,” Henning Hoff, of the German Council on Foreign Relations, told DW.<\/p>\n Merz has worked with\u00a0French President Emmanuel Macron<\/a> and\u00a0British Prime Minister Keir Starmer<\/a> to counterbalance the US’s declining commitment to Ukraine. “No one should doubt support for Ukraine,” Merz declared at a\u00a0 trilateral meeting in London in early December. Yet all three leaders face tight budgets, domestic pressure from the political right and waning public support for Ukraine in their own countries, as well.<\/p>\n Dependent on China<\/p>\n WithGerman industry reliant<\/a>\u00a0on the rare earth elements controlled by China<\/a>, Berlin has become increasingly dependent on Beijing.<\/p>\n “The Chinese are very successful at becoming leaders in many technological fields and taking positions that traditionally belonged to German industry,” Hoff said. “And, at such a moment, Germany also becomes not quite so important anymore.”<\/p>\n Wadephul: ‘We want to be reliable trading partners’<\/p>\n To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video<\/a><\/p>\n Merz plans to visit China in early 2026. At the G20<\/a> summit in Johannesburg, Merz told DW: “China could exert a little more pressure on Russia to end this war [in Ukraine]. If necessary, this will also be raised in my talks with the Chinese president [Xi Jinping<\/a>]\u00a0next year.” So far, nothing suggests that this hope will be fulfilled.<\/p>\n Germany and Israel<\/p>\n During his\u00a0December visit to Israel<\/a>, Merz said: “I come as a friend of Israel who knows that the friendship between Germany and Israel is infinitely valuable and precious.”<\/p>\n Following the\u00a0Hamas<\/a>\u00a0terror attack on October 7, 2023, Israel began a two-year war in Gaza<\/a>\u00a0that has killed more than 70,000 people. Standing alongside\u00a0Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu<\/a>, Merz acknowledged that the war has confronted Germany with “some dilemmas.” Merz invoked Germany’s responsibility for the Holocaust in saying his government\u00a0sought to uphold Israel’s security, but he added that he would voice criticism where necessary.<\/p>\n Notably, Merz no longer uses the formulation of his predecessor, Angela Merkel<\/a>\u00a0: “The security of Israel is Germany’s reason of state.” Instead, he said, supporting Israel’s existence and security belongs “to the unchangeable core of our relations.”<\/p>\n German Chancellor Merz reaffirms support for Israel<\/p>\n To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video<\/a><\/p>\n On key issues, however, the two governments remain far apart \u2014 especially on the two\u2011state solution. Germany continues to support the idea of a future Palestinian state<\/a> alongside Israel. Netanyahu rejects this, saying: “The purpose of a Palestinian state is to destroy the only Jewish state.”<\/p>\n Hans\u2011Jakob Schindler, a\u00a0Middle East and security analyst, said the two\u2011state solution was “possibly a very, very distant future vision whose practical feasibility is increasingly in question.”<\/p>\n Schindler said\u00a0Germany and the European Union had largely lost their role as mediators<\/a> in the Middle East. “It is clear that both the Palestinians and the Israeli side look to Washington as the central mediator and not to Europe,” Schindler said. The European Union will play an important role in reconstruction in Gaza and in humanitarian aid, he said “but, as a central mediator, Europe has, in part, really said goodbye over the last 10 years.”<\/p>\n Germany’s uneasy alliances<\/p>\n Germany must decide how to conduct foreign policy in a world where geopolitical weight is shifting and international rules are increasingly ignored.<\/p>\n Johannes Varwick, a professor of international relations at the University of Halle,\u00a0told DW via email that seeking partners who still value multilateralism \u2014 including difficult partners \u2014 is the right approach. “Germany is trying to maintain old alliances while also forging new partnerships and expanding networks with other middle powers worldwide,” Varwick wrote, citing Brazil<\/a>, Mexico<\/a>\u00a0and Vietnam<\/a> as examples. “Remaining in critical dialogue with one another” is essential, Varwick wrote. “Only talking to those who already agree makes one quite lonely in the reality of international politics.”<\/p>\n How Merz aims to regain Germany’s standing on foreign issues<\/p>\n To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video<\/a><\/p>\n Merz has emphasized foreign policy right from the start \u2014 and, because of his many trips abroad, he has at times been mockingly referred to as the “foreign-policy chancellor.”<\/p>\n “Overall, one can indeed speak of a certain revitalization,” Hoff said.<\/p>\n