External View

President Joachim Gauck's exhortation at the 50th Munich Security Conference for a greater role of Germany in the world, to "make a more substantial contribution […] earlier and more decisively," was well received by Germany's European compatriots and the United States as well.

In the larger context of an increasingly multipolar world, a more pro-active Germany is certainly also welcome and needed beyond its current traditional sphere of interaction in Europe and the Transatlantic relations.

The pertinent question, however, is what further shape and role will Germany take up in the global arena? And how will it be perceived as it takes bigger steps into the international arena?

Academics and policymakers have not come to a conclusive agreement in categorizing Germany's power status; some identify it as a middle power, yet others, like the prominent political scientist and geo-strategist Zbigniew Brzezinski in his 2012 publication, grouped Germany as one of the great powers.

Since the end of the Cold War, realist theoreticians predicted more power politics by Germany particularly after the "unification augmented Germany’s already substantial power base." Instead, a more restrained German foreign policy was observed, often dubbed as a culture of reticence (Kultur der Zurückhaltung).

Either as a middle power or a great power, it is more for the self-identification by the German public and its leaders to decide what kind of power it wants to be, take a step out of the shadows of the past and contribute in steering the West towards a global world rather than taking the backseat.