P6

• German reunification


  The process of East and West Germany becoming one country again after the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989
• The Berlin Wall did not fall instantly, but the events surrounding its breaching imposed an urgent question on German leadership: what would happen next?
• Reactions to German reunification

  • Majority of Germans wanted to reunite the country
  • Some in West Germany, especially the political left, feared a return of German nationalism
  • Some in East Germany merely wanted to reform East Germany, not necessarily reunite
• France and the UK were initially cautious about German reunification, fearing it would tilt the balance of power in Europe towards Germany
• The memory of a threatening Germany was still very much alive among many people in 1989, as it was only 44 years after the end of World War II
• German Chancellor Helmut Kohl did not wait for international approval, but instead acted swiftly to propose a plan for German reunification the same month the Berlin Wall fell
• Kohl emphasized Germany's commitment to the European project to ease fears other countries had about reunification
• Factors that made the Soviets accept German reunification


  • They were worried about a complete collapse of East Germany, which reunification could prevent
  • They were in a bad economic situation themselves and needed financial help from Germany
  • West Germany made important concessions regarding the reunified Germany's position in the world, Europe, and vis-à-vis the Soviet Union
• Steps towards German reunification

  1. Economic unification by equating the two currencies on a one to one basis

  2. The US proposal to let the two Germanies negotiate domestic matters and the four former occupying powers negotiate international matters

  3. Assurances to the Soviet Union that reunification would not be exploited against them
• On July 1, 1990, Germany became one economic union again, which avoided a complete economic collapse of East Germany and a massive exodus
• Concessions made to obtain Soviet approval for reunification

  • No NATO troops stationed in former East Germany
  • No nuclear weapons deployed in former East Germany
  • Germany would pay the cost of the withdrawal of the Red Army
  • A friendship treaty would be signed between reunified Germany and the Soviet Union
• Reunification was a very costly operation for West Germany, and the differences between East and West became very clear, requiring a lot of effort to regain Germany's former economic strength
• Due to the lack of competition and the centralized, planned economy in East Germany, everyone had the same car, which was not a very good car
• Western experts were not convinced Gorbachev's economic reform program would work, as it tried to preserve too much central planning and was likely to be undermined by the unsympathetic Soviet bureaucracy
• How Gorbachev was viewed

  • In the West, he was praised as the first Soviet leader to recognize the failings of communism, reduce international tensions, and contribute to ending the Cold War
  • In the Soviet Union, his reforms led to uncertainties, bolstered regional movements threatening the cohesion of the Soviet Union, and a loss of control over the unfolding events
• Gorbachev's reforms of glasnost and perestroika had started a process in which he had lost control and was now merely reacting to events as they unfolded
• Gorbachev severely underestimated and did not know how to handle or reverse the rise of regionalism and nationalism in the Soviet Union
• Granting more autonomy to the Soviet republics was a one-way street leading to ever more autonomy and eventually independence
• In August 1991, hardline communists organized a coup against Gorbachev to prevent the signing of the Union Treaty, which would grant greater autonomy to the Republics
• Despite the coup's failure, the Republics lost faith in the Soviet Union and Gorbachev's ability to control the unfolding events, leading to the dissolution of the Soviet Union
• The Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) was created to replace the Soviet Union, joined by 11 former Soviet Republics, while the Baltic States became fully independent
• Yeltsin faced the same problems in Russia that Gorbachev had faced as leader of the Soviet Union, including high inflation, bankruptcies, increased taxes, and a rigid bureaucracy
• In 1993, Yeltsin had to rely on bombing Parliament to resolve a dispute over his attempt to dissolve it
• The economic crisis in South-East Asia in 1997 hit Russia hard, and political stability only returned after Yeltsin appointed Vladimir Putin as Prime Minister in 1999
• The dissolution of the Soviet Union led to "unfrozen conflicts" - conflicts that were previously frozen by the Soviet grip on the Republics
• The West, particularly the US, did not want the USSR's dissolution, fearing it could lead to a return to communism, nationalism, or totalitarianism, and increase the number of nuclear powers
• Before the USSR's collapse, President Bush established connections with the republics' leaders and knew about the collapse before Gorbachev
• With the Cold War's end, Bush envisioned a new world order based on international law, liberalism, human rights, and free trade
• Clinton initially focused on domestic economic issues but gradually pursued his own foreign policy after 1994, which led to Russia's marginalization
• The USSR's collapse could trigger wars among its 15 Republics and increase the number of nuclear powers, as Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Ukraine housed former Soviet nuclear weapons
• Preventing nuclear proliferation from the former USSR was also a priority
• Before the USSR's collapse, President Bush established connections with the republics' leaders, and it is said he knew about the collapse before Gorbachev
• Bush had successes in Panama, German reunification, and the Gulf War but neglected domestic economic issues
• Clinton criticized Bush for raising taxes, breaking a campaign pledge, and losing voter support
• Clinton initially focused on domestic economic issues but gradually pursued his own foreign policy after 1994, which led to Russia's marginalization in world affairs
• Clinton and his advisors introduced the concept of "rogue states," countries that defied the new liberal world order and international law, including Libya, Sudan, Iraq, Iran, Cuba, and North Korea
• The notion of rogue states helped maintain public support for active foreign engagement
• The United States' dominance was overwhelming in every domain—economically, militarily, and culturally, with a significant global influence
• The end of the Cold War was a major disruption in world politics, fundamentally altering everything
• The collapse of the Soviet Union brought tensions between former Soviet republics and ethnic communities within some of these newly independent countries