Germany

Yearbook

    Right-wing Shift – Fast Forward
  • An ethnic-nationalist citizens’ movement has finally emerged in Germany too, and in record time; and with the entrance into the Bundestag of the Alternative für Deutschland it is becoming normalised. The only really new feature is the speed at which this has occurred. The political situation and...
    Right-Wing Populism: An Answer to the Crisis of Democratic Capitalism (1)
  • In broad areas of Europe as well as in North America, right-wing populist movements and parties have a substantial following and have chalked up impressive electoral successes. In Germany too, which had long been an exception, this trend has now set in. In Germany and Europe in general, right-wing...
    The LEFT
  • The LEFT received 8.4 percent of the vote in the 2005 federal elections and is now represented with fraction strength in the German Bundestag. As is generally known, in their agreement the Left Party.PDS and the WASG (Electoral Alternative for Social Justice) did not confine themselves to run...
    Germany as Hegemonic Power: The Crisis of European Integration
  • From its inception, Europe has been a political project – aimed at overcoming conflicts and creating cooperation. Over the course of the last decades European nations – led by economic and political elites – were able to overcome their long-established enmities.
    The LINKE after the Elections of 2011
  • The Berlin elections of September 2011 were the last in this year’s election cycle of seven regional and two communal elections. On the positive side, the LINKE has been able to assert itself as a political force for social justice. However, in all these elections it clearly remained behind its...

Focus

    AfD — Theories on right-wing populism in the “Berlin Republic”
  • The Alternative for Germany (AfD) is a relatively young party. When it was founded in February 2013, it was critical of Europe and the euro and made a name for itself by taking a nationalist stance in opposition to a decidedly neoliberal political climate, while at the same time displaying a nationalist, conservative wing.
    Germany
  • Elections 2014 *** Find a first election analysis (25 May) by Horst Kahrs on the right at "Documentation". *** IN POWER: CDU (right) Radical left party in the EP: 8 seats of 99 The Party of Democratic Socialism (PDS), heir to the Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED), and the...

Blog

    Sliding Further to the Right
  • The Alternative für Deutschland looks chaotic and divided, but beneath the surface, its neo-fascist wing seems to be gaining the upper hand. An analysis by Gerd Wiegel.
    Notes on Historical Revisionism in the European Union
  • Germany’s special historical responsibility is repeatedly reaffirmed, but at the same time interpreted in a new way – specifically now in the context of the war in Ukraine. Among those who call for German leadership, many like former German President Gauck are reinterpreting history at the European level in terms of the totalitarianism thesis.
    For a German Security Policy in the Service of Peace
  • In a statement issued by the WeltTrends Institute, notable German academics call on the German government to stop participating in the "escalation of the conflicts between NATO and Russia, currently centred on the Ukraine conflict".
    Germany on the Road to an SPD-Green-FDP Coalition
  • The formation of a 'traffic-light' government can base itself on a broad social consensus beyond the three parties. The consultation paper looks greener and more social than previous policy but at the same time without breaking from the logic of neoliberalism.
    Germany’s Upcoming Bundestag Election
  • In view of the recession in Germany’s manufacturing industry and with Angela Merkel not standing for election, the parties of the three chancellor candidates are closer in the polls than ever before. Die LINKE could have one path to power: in a coalition with the Social Democrats and the Greens.
    Die LINKE on Bundeswehr Deployment in Afghanistan
  • Stefan Liebich, Member of the German Bundstag and vice chair of the Parliamentarians Group on the USA, on his party’s position on German military intervention, differing views within DIE LINKE, and the lessons to be drawn.
    USSR and Germany: On the Way to 22 June 1941
  • On 22 June 1941, Nazi Germany began its war of extermination against the Soviet Union, displacing and killing millions. The date also marks the beginning of the extermination of Europe’s Jews. Russian-based historian and member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Vladimir Shveitser, analyses the geopolitical situation preceding the German attack.
    Never Again! "Operation Barbarossa" Anniversary
  • On June 22, 1941, Nazi Germany began the attack on the Soviet Union with “Operation Barbarossa”. From day one, the fascist aggressors terrified the civilian population in this war of predation and extermination. War and occupation killed 27 million citizens of diverse nationalities on Soviet Union territory alone.
    Reflections on the Eighth of May
  • Erhard Crome on the current German politics of history and the foreign policy of the European Union – on the occasion of the 76th anniversary of the victory over the Nazi regime.
    Does the EU Need ‘Coronabonds’?
  • In times of the coronavirus – just as in the 2008 financial crisis – the national state is again a central actor in Europe. Financial policy remains tied to the economic pecking order, with Germany at the very top. ‘Eurobonds’ are the key area of contention.
    A Breach in Germany’s Political Levee
  • The election of Thomas Kemmerich (FDP) as the new Minister President of Thuringia on 5 February 2020 represents a political breach of historic dimensions. For the first time, a Minister President will come to power with the votes of the nationalist Alternative für Deutschland (AfD).
    Asking you for solidarity
  • Kerem Schamberger, Vice-Chair of transform! europe’s member organisation ISW (Institute for Social, Ecological and Economic Studies) calls for solidarity and trial monitoring.
    Why it’s Worth Fighting for the Collective Movement
  • A new attempt from the left to challenge the neo-liberal ‘more-of-the-same’ status quo has emerged from the socio-political Left – the collective #aufstehen movement. There are many very valid reasons to stay away from it. Consider the words of poet Erich Fried: “Because I do not wish/ to get my...
    Merkel, Round Four! First Reflections
  • This appears to be the continuation of the outgoing Grand Coalition, and yet things are not quite the same. Never before has it taken a year to form a German Federal Government. What had happened?
    The “Berlin Republic” Shifts to the Right
  • The governing parties of the grand coalition between the CDU/CSU and SPD have clearly lost the German parliamentary elections (-13.7%). The defeat of this constellation reveals a massive shift in the Republic’s political landscape. This earthquake will shake the circumstances and institutions as we know them to their very foundations.
    On the 2016 Berlin election results
  • From a left-wing perspective, the results of the Berlin state election held on 18 September 2016 can be perceived as a success due to the good performance of the LEFT (Die LINKE). However, looking at the high approval rating for the AfD (Alternative für Deutschland – Alternative for Germany), they are also reason for concern.
    The 2016 German Regional Elections
  • The regional elections held on 13 March 2016 in the German states of Baden-Württemberg, Rhineland-Palatinate and Saxony-Anhalt were the first elections to take place in some of the larger German regions since the European elections and the regional elections held in 2014. Almost 13 million voters were called to the ballot, representing over one fifth of the German electorate. 1.3 million voters cast their ballot in favour of the AfD (Alternative for Germany – a conservative right-wing party).
    The (Not So) Slow Murder of the Geneva Convention
  • The Reactionary Rebellion (read the essay by Walter Baier) is gaining steam in Austria and Germany and de-facto abolishing the Geneva convention on refugees, which sets a dangerous precedent for others in the region.
    Standing together rather than standing alone
  • The case of Greece, the austerity policies imposed by the Eurogroup and the fact that hardliners in the governments of Germany and other countries have been blackmailing the Greek government to implement neoliberal programmes have led to discussions about the stance of DIE LINKE (Germany’s main left-wing party) on the currency union and the European Union, as well as the idea of withdrawing from the eurozone.
    The 18th German Bundestag Elections
  • The Christdemocratic Union (CDU) is the winner of this year’s German elections. The party could again increase their share of the votes to over 40% and thus suceeded in gaining a considerable plus.
    Die Linke and the Front de Gauche are Revamping Franco-German Relations
  • On 22 January 2013, France and Germany were celebrating, with considerable pomp, the anniversary of the “Elysée Treaty”. However, 50 years after the treaty was signed, in a new world and a crisis in Europe, it would be more appropriate to revamp Franco-German relations … an idea, which at least inspired the Front de Gauche and Die Linke, whose co-operation has strengthened over the last few years.
    Fighting Plant Closures
  • Results of a study from Germany The crisis on the international financial markets has had a powerful impact on the real economy. The explosive nature of the situation is produced by two crises coming together and to an extent reinforcing each other: asset losses, indebtedness and the credit...

Publication

    Germany Sets Course
  • This paper on German politics deals with several questions: What is the current situation? How to organize a so-called third pole, the political camp of solidarity? How to re-organize the left party and how to handle the question of a centre-left government?

Calendar

    Transformationsprozesse in historischer Perspektive
  • Diese Tagung widmet sich der Frage, wie aktuell der Ansatz von Eric Hobsbawm ist und inwieweit aus seinen Konzepten wertvolle Hinweise und methodische Umgangsformen für die Interpretation der heutigen Transformation abgeleitet werden können. Unter den Redner:innen befinden sich u.A. auch Cornelia Hildebrandt und Roland Kulke von transform! europe.
    Coalition of Labour: Worker's Voices in Europe
  • The Rosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung Bavaria talks with the authors of the transform! europe ePublication Coalition of Labour: Worker's Voices in Europe, which provides an analysis of the current working and living conditions, the perceived causes of their situation, and the impact of the pandemic of French, German, and Italian workers.
    150 Years Paris Commune
  • On 18 March, the 150th anniversary of the proclamation of the Paris Commune, the Fondation Gabriel Péri (Paris) and the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation (Berlin) are organising an online event where German and French historians and politicians will discuss their perspectives on the world-historical event. Watch the full video!

Webinars