The flags of the European Union and Germany waving in the wind in front of the Reichstag in Berlin
Seminaarit

Germany on the eve of elections: A structural crisis for the EU’s engine?

The seminar will discuss the main political and economic developments in Germany against the wider background of Donald Trump’s reelection and the worsening geopolitical environment.

SEMINAR
12.2.2025 10:00 - 12:00

Germany is approaching its parliamentary elections in the most difficult economic and political conjuncture in decades. The German economy went into recession in 2023 and remained stagnant in 2024, with some iconic sectors such as the automotive industry mired in crisis. Having lost its main supplier of energy, Russia, Berlin faces significant structural issues. The domestic political scene is more fractured than in the past, with the rise of challenger parties – most notably the far-right Alternative for Germany – and the likelier need of broader coalitions to form governments at both state and federal level. In the 2010s, Germany was broadly seen as the leading member state in EU politics, alone or in tandem with France. While remaining essential to the EU, the Franco-German axis has been challenged by the crises of the 2020s, but the vacuum created by its weakness has not been, and arguably cannot be filled by other actors.

What are the main political and economic developments in Germany on the eve of the 2025 parliamentary elections? What are the likely repercussions at the European level, and what are the prospects for future German leadership in the EU? The seminar will discuss these issues against the wider background of Donald Trump’s reelection and the worsening geopolitical environment.

Programme

Welcoming remarks:
Tuomas Iso-Markku, Senior Research Fellow, FIIA

Speaker:
Nicolai von Ondarza, Head of Research Division of EU/Europe, German Institute for International and Security Affairs SWP

Comments:
Manuel Müller, Senior Research Fellow, FIIA
Sanna Salo, Senior Research Fellow, FIIA

Moderator:
Marco Siddi, Leading Researcher, FIIA

Puhujat

Tuomas Iso-Markku
Senior Research Fellow, FIIA
Ondarza von Nicolai smiling
Nicolai von Ondarza
Head of Research Division of EU/Europe, German Institute for International and Security Affairs SWP
Manuel Müller
Senior Research Fellow, FIIA
Sanna Salo
Senior Research Fellow, FIIA
Marco Siddi
Leading Researcher, FIIA

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