Security Policy of the FRG

The unification of Germany in 1990 marked a pivotal moment in the post-Cold War international order, seemingly heralding an era where geoeconomics would supersede geopolitics. This article analyzes the evolution of the Federal Republic of Germany’s security policy from 1990 to the present, tracing its path from a period of adaptation and restraint to the fundamental paradigm shift announced in 2022. The study argues that in the initial decades, Germany, having achieved “absolute security”, pursued a model of a “civilian power”, relying on diplomacy, multilateralism, and checkbook diplomacy while cautiously expanding the Bundeswehr’s international role through UN and NATO missions in the Balkans and Afghanistan. The article identifies key drivers of change, including NATO’s eastward expansion, advocated by Germany to create a buffer zone and shed its Cold War “front-line” status, and growing tensions with Russia following the 2008 Georgia war and the 2014 annexation of Crimea. However, the watershed moment came with the beginning of Russia’s Special Military Operation in Ukraine in 2022, which prompted Chancellor Olaf Scholz to declare a “Zeitenwende” (turning point). This concept signifies a radical break from the post-Cold War era, leading to a comprehensive remilitarization of German foreign policy. Core manifestations of this shift include the establishment of a € 100 billion special fund for the Bundeswehr, the end of restrictions on arms deliveries to conflict zones, a fundamental reassessment of relations with Russia, and the securitization of all policy domains, as codified in the 2023 National Security Strategy. The conclusion highlights that German security policy has come full circle, returning security and military might to the forefront of national strategy. The new government’s commitment to building “the strongest conventional army in Europe” underscores a definitive departure from the post-unification paradigm, facing the challenges of societal polarization and economic constraints in a new era of geopolitical confrontation

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