‘Understanding’ for Russia in Germany: international triangle meets domestic politics

Abstract

‘Understanding’ for Vladimir Putin’s Russia is present across Germany’s political spectrum, in business sectors, and within society/the electorate at large. It was boosted by the outcome of the 2017 election which saw a far right party, the Alternative für Deutschland (AfD), join Die Linke, a far left party, as a ‘pro-Russia’ force in parliament. Together they obtained 22% of the vote. Voices in centre parties also urge ‘dialogue’ and conciliation with Russia. Extra-parliamentary advocates are more strident in their support. Germany’s vulnerable coalition government is confronted by Russian disinformation exploiting historical memory, discontent with policies, and scepticism towards the US, a situation exacerbated by the Trump administration. This combination of developments generates a multidimensional, underestimated, and partly realised potential for more destabilisation of Western alliances and Eurasian security.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1 The AfD is also represented in all regional parliaments.

2 So named because the emblematic colours associated with the parties concerned (FDP = yellow; CDU-CSU = black; Greens = green) are also the colours of the flag of Jamaica.

3 There is still a pragmatic division between federal and regional politics when sharing power is possible.

4 The acronym of a political movement translated as ‘Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamisation of the West’.

5 Despite confusing overtures to Putin on other issues, Trump’s opposition to Nord Stream II has been implacable. In another attempt to find a compromise, Merkel promised that Germany would purchase more US LNG (Türkes 2018) and build new LNG terminals.

Additional information

Funding

This article was funded by Alexander von Humboldt-Stiftung.

Notes on contributors

Steve Wood

Steve Wood (PhD) is Associate Professor in Politics and International Relations at Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia. He has published four books and many articles including in International Politics, Cooperation and Conflict, Review of International Studies, Political Science Quarterly, Politics and Policy, European Foreign Affairs Review and Geopolitics. Email: [email protected]