Germany and the Arab Spring: Foreign Policy between New Activism and Old Habits
in German Politics and Society
In the midst of the European Union’s (EU) unprecedented crisis and a
rapidly changing international environment, Germany is redefining its
place in Europe and in the world. Long-cherished certainties such as a
staunch commitment to European integration and to its Western allies in
general seem being called into question. Critics like the former Chancellor
Helmut Kohl or the historian Heinrich August Winkler deplore a missing
compass and “politics without a project.”1 Against this background, this
article analyses the German policy toward an issue that forcefully marked
the year 2011 and continues to transform North Africa and the Middle
East—the so-called “Arab Spring”.