Ostpolitik
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ostpolitik (German for Eastern Policy) is a term for the "Change Through Rapprochement" policy — as verbalized by Egon Bahr in 1963 — the efforts of Willy Brandt, Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany), to normalise his country's relations with Eastern European nations (including the German Democratic Republic, or East Germany).
The proper term is in fact Neue Ostpolitik (German for New Eastern Policy), to set a contrast to the former Eastern Europe policy of the Christian Democratic governments until 1969. The Christian Democrats under Konrad Adenauer and others tried to ignore and isolate the communist regime of East Germany, while Brandt's Social Democrats tried to achieve more freedom for East Germans by a certain degree of collaboration.
Contents |
[edit] Intention
After World War II, Germany was divided between the Federal Republic of Germany (West) and the German Democratic Republic (East). Initially, both governments claimed that they represented the entire German nation. However, the Federal Republic said that it was the only German government with a democratic legitimation. Later, at the end of the 1960s, the communist government of GDR claimed that there was no longer a common German nation as the GDR had established a 'socialist' nation.
The Federal Governments were dominated by the Christian Democratic Union from 1949 to 1969. These governments refused to have any contact with the GDR government due to its undemocratic character, and the Hallstein Doctrine stipulated the ceasing of diplomatic relations with any country that established diplomatic relations with GDR. The first case of applied Hallstein Doctrine was Yugoslavia that accepted a GDR ambassador in 1957. In the 1960s it became obvious that this policy would not work forever. When the Federal Republic in 1965 established diplomatic relations with Israel, Arabic countries countered by establishing diplomatic relations with the GDR, after breaking off with the Federal Republic.
Willy Brandt was the Socialist mayor of West Berlin, and pursued an end to frigid relations with Communist East Germany in order to open up commerce across borders. His new Ostpolitik entailed the idea that the Hallstein Doctrine did not help to undermine the communist regime or even lighten the situation of the Germans in GDR. Brandt thought that collaboration with the communists would foster German-German encounters and trade that would undermine the communist government over the long term.
Nonetheless, he stressed that his new Ostpolitik did not neglect the close ties of the Federal Republic with Western Europe and the United States. In fact, the Federal Government had repeatedly been urged by US politicians like Henry Kissinger to be more flexible. Also, other West European countries entered a period of more daring policy directed to the East.[1] When the Brandt government came to power in 1969, the same politicians now feared a more independent German Ostpolitik, a new "Rapallo". France feared that the Federal Republic would become more powerful after détente, Brandt gained the French endorsement by holding out German financial sacrifices concerning European common agricultural policy.[2]
[edit] Realization
Every step towards Eastern Europe had to start in Moscow. In 1970 Brandt signed the Treaty of Moscow about the renunciation of the use of force and recognizing the current European borders. The Treaty of Warsaw essentially repeated the Moscow treaty, above all the Federal Republic's recognition of the Oder-Neisse Line. Treaties with other Eastern European countries followed.
The most controversial agreement was the Basic Treaty of 1972 with GDR. The Federal Republic agreed on establishing diplomatic relations with GDR. Chancellor Brandt repeated his statement of 1969, that although two states exist in Germany, they can not be a foreign country to each other.
The conservative CDU opposition party in the Federal Parliament refused the Basic Treaty because they thought that the government gave away some Federal positions too easily. They also criticized flaws like the unintentional publishing of the Bahr-Papier, a paper in which Brandt's right hand Egon Bahr had agreed with Soviet diplomat Valentin Falin on essential issues.[3]
The Brandt government, a coalition of Social Democrats and Free Democrats, lost a number of parliament members to the CDU opposition. In April 1972 it even seemed that opposition leader Rainer Barzel had enough support to become new Chancellor, but in the parliamentary decision he came two votes short. Later it was found out that GDR had paid those two CDU seats to vote against Barzel. New general elections in November 1972 gave the Brandt government a victory and on May 11 1973 the Federal Parliament approved the Basic Treaty.
According to the Basic Treaty the Federal Republic and GDR accepted each other's ambassadors, called "permanent representations". It also made it possible to the two German states to become member states of United Nations.
In 1982 the CDU leader Helmut Kohl became German Chancellor, but did not change Germany's policy towards the GDR. In 1983 even Franz Josef Strauß, who had fiercely fought against the Basic Treaty, agreed to give a one billion loan (initiated by Kohl) to the GDR.
[edit] Vatican diplomacy
Ostpolitik is also the name given to Pope Paul VI's policies towards the Soviet Union and its Eastern European satellite States. Trying to improve the condition of Christians behind the Iron Curtain, he engaged in dialogue with Communist authorities at several levels, receiving Foreign Minister Andrei Gromyko and USSR President Nikolai Podgorny in 1966 and 1967 in the Vatican. The situation of the Church in Poland, Hungary and Romania improved somewhat during his pontificate. [4]
[edit] Korea
The Republic of Korea's 1980s policy of Nordpolitik was named in allusion to Ostpolitik; its successor is the also similar Sunshine policy.
[edit] List of treaties
These are West German treaties that have Ostpolitik as a primary or secondary policy goal.
- Permit Agreement from December 17, 1963
- Treaty of Moscow from August 12, 1970
- Treaty of Warsaw from December 7, 1970
- Four-Power Agreement from September 3, 1971
- Transit Agreement from December 17, 1971
- Basic Treaty from December 21, 1972
- Treaty of Prague from December 11, 1973
Later agreements in the period of Christian Democrat Helmut Kohl (since 1982), although dealing with similar issues and having similar goals, are not considered to be "Ostpolitik".
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- "Change through Rapprochement", excerpt from Egon Bahrs speech
- Ostpolitik.net, international history project at the University of Mannheim
[edit] Footnotes
- ^ Helga Haftendorn: Deutsche Außenpolitik zwischen Selbstbeschränkung und Selbstbehauptung 1945-2000. Deutsche Verlags-Anstalt: Stuttgart / München 2001, p. 173/174.
- ^ Helga Haftendorn: Deutsche Außenpolitik zwischen Selbstbeschränkung und Selbstbehauptung 1945-2000. Deutsche Verlags-Anstalt: Stuttgart / München 2001, p. 181.
- ^ Helga Haftendorn: Deutsche Außenpolitik zwischen Selbstbeschränkung und Selbstbehauptung 1945-2000. Deutsche Verlags-Anstalt: Stuttgart / München 2001, p. 183/184.
- ^ Franzen 427
