Between domestic constraints and multilateral obligations - The reform of the Bundeswehr in the context of a normalised German foreign and security policy

Abstract

This thesis seeks to understand the developments in Germany’s foreign and security policy since the end of the Cold War. Primarily, this thesis will centre on the question of whether Germany can now, after being re-unified for more than 20 years, be considered a normal actor in international relations. Although this subject has been debated extensively, the effects a possible change in foreign policy behaviour has on related fields of policy, have largely been left aside. This thesis therefore sets out to understand if there has in fact been a change in Germany’s foreign and security policy and will then apply the findings on the institution most affected by this change, i.e. Germany’s armed forces the Bundeswehr. It will therefore firstly discuss the perceived changes in German foreign policy since 1990 by analysing the academic debate on the process of normalisation and continuation. It will be argued that Germany has in fact become more normal and abandoned the constrained foreign policy of the Cold-War-era. The Bundeswehr will therefore have to be reformed accordingly to accommodate the new tasks set out by the changed foreign policy – most importantly peacekeeping and peace-enforcing out-of-area missions. This thesis will therefore analyse the reform efforts made over the last 20 years and apply them to the Bundeswehr’s large deployments in Kosovo and Afghanistan to determine how effective the reforms have been. Finally, this thesis will be able to contribute to the discussion on Germany’s status of a normal player in international relations with the added perspective from the Bundeswehr’s point of view.