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Welche Macht darf es denn Sein? Tracing ‘Power’ in German Foreign Policy Discourse

Berenskoetter, Felix; Stritzel, Holger

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Authors

Felix Berenskoetter

Holger Stritzel



Abstract

The relationship between ‘Germany’ and ‘power’ remains a sensitive issue. While observers tend to agree that Germany has regained the status of the most powerful country in Europe, there is debate whether that is to be welcomed or whether that is a problem. Underpinning this debate are views, both within Germany and amongst its neighbours, regarding the kind of power Germany has, or should (not) have. Against this backdrop, the article reviews the dominant role conceptions used in the expert discourse on German foreign policy since the Cold War that depict Germany as a particular type of ‘power’. Specifically, we sketch the evolution of three prominent conceptions (constrained power, civilian power, hegemonic power) and the recent emergence of a new one (shaping power). The article discusses how these labels have emerged to give meaning to Germany’s position in international relations, points to their normative and political function, and to the limited ability of such role images to tell us much about how Germany actually exercises power.

Citation

Berenskoetter, F., & Stritzel, H. (2019). Welche Macht darf es denn Sein? Tracing ‘Power’ in German Foreign Policy Discourse. German Politics, 30(1), 31-50. https://doi.org/10.1080/09644008.2019.1631808

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date Apr 1, 2019
Online Publication Date Jul 1, 2019
Publication Date Jul 1, 2019
Deposit Date Jun 25, 2019
Publicly Available Date Jun 25, 2019
Journal German Politics
Print ISSN 0964-4008
Electronic ISSN 1743-8993
Publisher Taylor and Francis Group
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 30
Issue 1
Pages 31-50
DOI https://doi.org/10.1080/09644008.2019.1631808
Related Public URLs https://www.tandfonline.com/toc/fgrp20/current

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