Germany
Europe’s divisions over China could hamper G-7 unity
While the focus of the G-7 meeting in Hiroshima this week will be on Russia, the gathering leaders will have China on their minds. But could differences in Europe over how best to…
Make or break: Scholz’ Beijing business
On Friday, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz will become one of the first global leaders to visit China since Xi Jinping emerged more powerful than ever from the 20th Communist Party…
A new solidarity? Olaf Scholz on the future of Europe
The German Chancellor Helmut Schmidt once quipped that, in politics, “whoever has visions should go to the doctor”. Big-thinking and inspiring rhetoric do not marry easily with…
France can help Albanese fix AUKUS
Recently-elected Labor Prime Minister Anthony Albanese faces a dilemma on nuclear submarines. Having received only a single day’s notice, and wanting to avoid looking weak on…
The half-hour that fundamentally split Germany from Russia
If you want to see how Vladimir Putin’s aggression is reshaping the European mindset then Germany offers the best view.
It’s remarkable how far strategic thinking has shifted in…
Can the new German foreign minister make a difference?
It is less than two months since Angela Merkel stood down as chancellor of Germany, and a “traffic light” coalition government comprising the Social Democrats, Greens and Free…
Merkel mark II?
Should the world expect four more years of Angela Merkel, “only with less hair”, as the leading broadsheet, Süeddeutsche Zeitung, ungenerously predicted of Germany’s shiny domed…
The revenge of the Scholzomat
“Today is essentially Christmas and a birthday in one for you, and yet you seem about as euphoric as an English butler at teatime,” remarked an astonished television interviewer…
Nord Stream 2: Will you go to the Gazprom with me?
Of the several spectres haunting Europe, the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline is one of the most persistent. This week, the project hit another snag. Its approval process was…
Germany and Europe: “Ampel” time for reform
It’s coalition time in Germany. At the 26 September election, the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD), led by the current Finance Minister Olaf Scholz, emerged as the largest party…