FEATURED COMMENTARY & ANALYSIS

FAST THINKING: Nord Stream 2 gets the green light

New Atlanticist May 6, 2025

Is Merz’s double-take chancellor vote a sign of things to come in Germany?

By Jörn Fleck and Jurek Wille

It took two rounds of voting in the Bundestag to elect Friedrich Merz chancellor, a sign of division unprecedented in modern German history.
Defense Policy Elections
FAST THINKING: Nord Stream 2 gets the green light

New Atlanticist Feb 19, 2025

Germany’s economy has gone from engine to anchor. Here’s what the next chancellor faces.

By Piotr Arak

Revitalizing growth in Germany’s economy, which appears increasingly mired in stagnation, will demand urgent action from the next chancellor.
Economy & Business Elections
FAST THINKING: Nord Stream 2 gets the green light

New Atlanticist Feb 4, 2025

The next German chancellor must lead from the front, not the middle, on European security

By Rachel Rizzo, James Batchik

From support for Ukraine to defense spending, German leaders would be wise to take the phrase Führung aus der Mitte permanently out of their vocabulary.
Elections Germany

Events

Online Event Tue, May 6, 2025 • 10:00 am ET

What to expect from Germany’s next government
Elections Europe & Eurasia European Union Germany
Online Event Tue, February 25, 2025 • 9:00 am ET

Debriefing Germany’s federal elections
Elections European Union Germany Politics & Diplomacy

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The Europe Center promotes the transatlantic leadership and strategies required to ensure a strong Europe.

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Fast Thinking

Jul 21, 2021

FAST THINKING: Nord Stream 2 gets the green light

By Atlantic Council

How will the United States and Germany balance business needs with security? And what price will Kyiv be forced to pay? We drilled down with our experts for answers.

Energy & Environment Germany

In the News

Jul 21, 2021

Herbst in The Hill: Acquiescing to Berlin, emboldening Moscow and squeezing Kyiv—Biden and Nord Stream 2

By Atlantic Council

Geopolitics & Energy Security Germany

UkraineAlert

Jul 10, 2021

Putin will use weaponized pipeline to blackmail Europe

By Inna Sovsun

Vladimir Putin makes little secret of his plans to use the Nord Stream 2 pipeline as a geopolitical weapon, but will Western leaders act before the energy infrastructure project enters service in the coming months?

European Union Geopolitics & Energy Security

UkraineAlert

Jul 9, 2021

Why Germany’s relationship with Putin’s Russia is a problem for Ukraine

By John Lough

When Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy meets German Chancellor Angela Merkel on July 12, they will find plenty of common ground in their analysis of Russia and their difficult relationships with Vladimir Putin.

Conflict Germany

UkraineAlert

Jul 7, 2021

Biden faces further battle over Putin’s pipeline

By Diane Francis

President Biden’s efforts to strike a deal with Germany over Putin’s Nord Stream 2 pipeline are encountering fresh opposition as the Kremlin underlines its readiness to use energy supplies as a geopolitical weapon.

Geopolitics & Energy Security Germany

New Atlanticist

Jun 14, 2021

MARKUP: Our experts annotate the G7 communiqué

By Julia Friedlander, Ash Jain, Rama Yade, David Bray, Benjamin Haddad, Josh Lipsky

How can you dig through 14,000 words of diplomat-speak to find what these world leaders are really saying? Leave that to the Atlantic Council’s experts.

Economy & Business France

In the News

Jun 10, 2021

Morningstar Quoted in Brussels Morning on Nord Stream 2
Europe & Eurasia Geopolitics & Energy Security

New Atlanticist

Jun 9, 2021

IN BRIEF: Why the G7 summit matters, in seven charts

By GeoEconomics Center

The G7 is meeting in person for the first time since the pandemic began. The GeoEconomics Center explains the top seven issues on the agenda and why they matter.

Economy & Business Fiscal and Structural Reform

Blog Post

Jun 8, 2021

The growing global alignment in regulating Chinese trade and investment

By John Kabealo

The rapid revisions to US FDI and trade policy and the fast momentum the United States has helped to create in its diplomatic efforts reflect a near uniform consensus in the United States, and a growing consensus among our allies, that cross-border trade and investment are squarely issues of national security. Traditional US transatlantic allies appear to be serving US interests, and other countries with complex relations with China are adopting FDI screening processes that mimic CFIUS. The numerous efforts to revise statutory and regulatory regimes are an unmistakable signal that the view of China as a rival, and indeed a threat, to the established global order, is both widespread and likely to endure.

China Defense Technologies

UkraineAlert

May 20, 2021

Biden softens sanctions on Putin’s pipeline

By Diane Francis

The Biden administration has this week announced a mixed bag of sanctions and waivers concerning the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, leaving opponents of Putin’s pet energy project confused and alarmed.

Geopolitics & Energy Security Germany
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Jörn Fleck

Senior Director

Europe Center Transform Europe Initiative

Digital Policy Economy & Business

Fellow

Jacob Heilbrunn

Nonresident Senior Fellow

Eurasia Center

Media Europe & Eurasia

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Stuart Jones

Program Assistant

Europe Center

Europe & Eurasia European Union

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James Kirchick

Nonresident Senior Fellow

Europe Center

Central Europe Conflict

Fellow

Andrea Montanino

Nonresident Senior Fellow

GeoEconomics Center

Economy & Business Europe & Eurasia

Staff

Jacopo Pastorelli

Program Assistant

Europe Center

Economy & Business Europe & Eurasia
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