Manchester University Press
2 A post-war history of German security culture
Abstract
This chapter traces the origin and post-war development of the competing logics of thinking within Germany's security culture. It shows the importance of the German past in the struggle for moral and intellectual leadership in security policy debates and illuminates the key issues, arguments and taboos of the out-of-area debate by placing them in historical context. It begins by showing how the German defeat of 1945 left a strong imprint on the security thinking of German elites and outlines how different political and social groups learned different lessons from the debacle, respectively ‘never again war’ and ‘never again alone’.
Abstract
This chapter traces the origin and post-war development of the competing logics of thinking within Germany's security culture. It shows the importance of the German past in the struggle for moral and intellectual leadership in security policy debates and illuminates the key issues, arguments and taboos of the out-of-area debate by placing them in historical context. It begins by showing how the German defeat of 1945 left a strong imprint on the security thinking of German elites and outlines how different political and social groups learned different lessons from the debacle, respectively ‘never again war’ and ‘never again alone’.
Chapters in this book
- Front matter i
- Contents v
- List of tables vi
- Preface vii
- Acknowledgements viii
- List of abbreviations ix
- Introduction 1
- Part I: Research design and historical background 5
- 1 Studying German strategic culture 9
- 2 A post-war history of German security culture 24
- Part II: A military role for Germany in international crisis management? 45
- 3 From the Gulf War to Somalia 49
- 4 From Srebrenica to Operation Allied Force 70
- 5 Back to the Gulf 81
- Part III: The Bundeswehr: willing and able? 99
- 6 The Bundeswehr: a force for good? 101
- 7 The Bundeswehr’s projection capability 119
- Conclusion 142
- Appendices 157
- Bibliography 163
- Index 183
Chapters in this book
- Front matter i
- Contents v
- List of tables vi
- Preface vii
- Acknowledgements viii
- List of abbreviations ix
- Introduction 1
- Part I: Research design and historical background 5
- 1 Studying German strategic culture 9
- 2 A post-war history of German security culture 24
- Part II: A military role for Germany in international crisis management? 45
- 3 From the Gulf War to Somalia 49
- 4 From Srebrenica to Operation Allied Force 70
- 5 Back to the Gulf 81
- Part III: The Bundeswehr: willing and able? 99
- 6 The Bundeswehr: a force for good? 101
- 7 The Bundeswehr’s projection capability 119
- Conclusion 142
- Appendices 157
- Bibliography 163
- Index 183
