Trans-Atlantic Ties
February 25, 2007
DW: How are Germany and the US drifting apart?
Nicole Renvert: Interests have shifted. It's not so much that our value systems differ, but we are pursuing other geo-political goals and we are also using different methods to reach these goals. Clearly, after the end of the Cold War, the US became challenged in a different way to Germany. I think this realization came pretty late on both sides of the Atlantic -- that once you have changed goals and methods, you also have to change the way you interact.
And why did this occur in such a small space of time? Did Sept. 11 and German reunification play a role?
I don't think it did occur in short space of time. I think basically the confrontation we saw in 2002 with the discussion about the intervention in Iraq was just the tip of the iceberg. I think the period after World War II was an anomaly, when there was such a focus on western Europe and particularly the relationship between Germany and the US, which was seen as a model democracy. After the end of the Cold War we faced a period of normalization but then Sept.11 changed many things, and one of these things was the way that Germany and the US spoke to each other.
To what extent is the media responsible for this?
The media has very short-lived dimensions. Sometimes it emphasizes tensions and sometimes it undermines long-standing relationships. The relationship between Germany and the US was never an easy one, and the media highlights it differently, at different times. But now you get the impression this relationship has changed fundamentally, even though there have always been shifts and changes.
How do things look now that Angela Merkel is chancellor and seems to be able to discuss topics with George W. Bush and Vladimir Putin in a language they both seem to understand?
I think she does a tremendous job. I think everyone is extremely surprised and impressed by how she rose to this new role as a real leader -- in a very good sense of the word -- and I do think it is important to have a dialogue. During the late 1990s we neglected the importance of dialogue at a very high political level, and I think she managed to revitalize it.