For the full recording of the event
On April 11, Ambassador Dr. Christoph Heusgen, Permanent Representative of Germany to the United Nations, spoke about Germany’s vision for the future of the United Nations and European Union. He was introduced by Thomas Graham, Senior Fellow at Yale’s Jackson Institute for Foreign Affairs and Managing Director at Kissinger Associates, and Yuriy Sergeyev, former Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the UN and current Lecturer in Political Science at Yale.
Ambassador Heusgen has spent the larger part of his career in European affairs, and for the last 30 years has been the top person in Chancellor Merkel’s team on foreign policy and security. “For Germany, the UN and EU are at the top of the priority list”, he said, highlighting the historical importance of those venues of international cooperation. Following the atrocities of the Second World War, Allies’ influence on the German constitution and West Germany’s political and economic development meant that for postwar generations, democracy, the rule of law, and relying on civil approaches to conflict resolution are of utmost importance.
“Germany has always been supportive of the UN because it is where all countries are represented and all decisions are made,” said Dr. Heusgen, and noted that Germany is the 2nd largest contributor to the UN budget (after the U.S.) and has taken a seat at the Security Council every eight years. Germany, the core member of the EU, considers forms of tight regional cooperation “a worthwhile model for other regions to emulate.” To that end, Germany is supportive of organizations such as ASEAN, Mercosur, the Gulf Cooperation Council and the African Union.
NATO, he similarly asserted, has been another alliance “instrumental in preserving peace in the postwar era” as with the war in Afghanistan and invasion of Ukraine it “came to play an important role for the rule of law”. Speaking of Germany’s consistent failure to meet the 2% of GDP defense spending target for member states, Dr. Heusgen said that Germany divides its budget surplus equally between development policy and defense, guided by the conviction that “no crisis can be resolved with the military alone.” The ambassador further emphasized that “[Germany is] in favor of a rules-based international order; that is something we promote, and if other countries do not follow this order, we will criticize.”
Lately under this criticism found themselves Russia, China, and the United States. “Russia’s 2014 invasion of Crimea undermines international law”, stressed Dr. Heusgen, and added that the defense of Assad’s regime in Syria “undermines humanitarian and international law”. China has repeatedly violated international sea laws, and domestically violated human rights principles in dealing with minorities, journalists, and NGOs. Moreover, Dr. Heusgen sees President Xi Jinping’s parting with term limits “undemocratic”.
The view on some recent U.S. actions has not been all-positive either: “it was thanks to the U.S. that Germany got back on its feet after WWII, so it hurts when Nikki Haley says she shares John Bolton’s disdain for the UN,” remarked Dr. Heusgen. He added: “We regret that the U.S. is leaving the Paris Agreement and is on the verge of leaving the Iran Nuclear Deal, despite Iran adhering…we also believe that the freedom of media is sacred, and the [American] president’s criticism of fake news and the judicial system is sad in a democratic country.”
Despite those developments – as well as internal strifes within Europe over issues including immigration, jobs, and energy security – Germany remains committed to working within the existing EU and UN frameworks. “In global relations there is hope for win-win situations,” he stated. But only by bringing all parties to the negotiating table – both supporters and opponents of globalization, countries welcoming migrants and those seeking to keep them out, surplus states and deficit states – “can we come to agreement where both sides win.”
Written By Michelle Printsev, YC 2019, Berkeley College