Germany Indo-Pacific

While the whole world is talking about Chancellor Scholz’s controversial visit to China, Germany’s ties with Japan are growing quietly but significantly.

The broader context behind Germany and France’s participation in Australia’s “Pitch Black” air force exercise.

Scholz called his trip to Japan “a clear political signal that Germany and the EU will continue and intensify their engagement with the Indo-Pacific region.”

A growing congruence of interests has prompted the two nations to expand their strategic partnership into the realm of defense and security cooperation.

In Tokyo for a port call by the frigate Bayern, the German navy chief underscored his country's concerns about freedom of navigation in the Indo-Pacific.

Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer imagines a larger role for her country in the region, though in prudent terms.

The commitment comes amid growing skepticism about China across key European capitals, including Berlin.

A new opinion poll shows a dramatic growth in public pessimism about China across Europe, North America, and the Asia-Pacific.

Like Monday’s summit, Berlin’s regional strategy tinkers around the edges of trade policy without risking the cost of a full-fledged strategic reckoning with China.

Germany’s trade-focused engagement with China strongly influenced a similar EU policy in the 1990s. Will a German shift now bring the EU with it?

An interview with Thorsten Benner and Torrey Taussig.