Historical Relationship and Differences Between Western and Eastern Europe From German Perspective
In the post-unification Germany of the present, the country seems to be caught between two worlds. Certainly, reservations about German power have tapered off. Germany has not become an irredentist nationalist power in European Union attire. In its relations with Western Europe, Germany has been successful in dispelling such fears. In Eastern Europe, the perception and the actual role of Germany is not bathed as much in the warm light of multilateralism. The challenge is not just for Germany to work harder to convince the East that it is well-intentioned. The deeper challenge however is to confront the fact that historical and structural constraints converge to create a situation of
asymmetric dependence, rather than asymmetric interdependence, complicated further by
the process of European integration and globalization. As being the land in between Russia and
Germany, one can understand their nervousness. However, Germany is part of the West and it is this Europe that the East seeks to join, which makes understanding their German neighbor even more.
It is the thesis of this author that Germany will continue to be influenced by its role as a rational actor in the framework of the EU and will develop better relations with the East as well as with the West, especially as shown in its actions in the sovereign debt crisis. However, the results are a mixed bag with evidence that Germany may be aiming for an economic (if not military) dominance in the East and in the West.