American-German Institute

08/08/2023

New publication: New Strategies of Transnational European-U.S. Right-Wing Extremist Combat Sports Networks

by Alexander Ritzmann

This article assesses the main strategies, networks, and threat potentials affiliated with the activities of two current key right-wing extremist (RWE) leaders who first met in 2018 at a combat sports and music festival in Germany. The younger of the two, U.S. citizen Robert Rundo, later created one of the largest transnational right-wing extremist combat sports networks, called Active Clubs. His role model and mentor, the Russian citizen Denis Kapustin (aka Nikitin), has been building the foundation for this network in Europe since 2006. Kapustin is currently the commander of the Russian Volunteer Corps (RDK) military unit that fights on the side of Ukraine against the invading Russian army.

Transnational RWE networks pose significant challenges for the national security of the United States and Europe. This article will address two current manifestations of this threat. First, it addresses the White Supremacy 3.0 strategy. This strategy aims to grow the existing RWE combat sports network in the United States and beyond by mainstreaming its visible activities, particularly through a focus on promoting athletic aesthetics, fitness, and sports. If successfully implemented, this strategy could significantly increase the number of combat sports-trained RWE individuals.

Second, members of RWE combat sports networks are currently fighting on both sides of the Russian war on Ukraine. RWE individuals have access to military combat training and state-of-the-art weapons of war. Some are gathering battlefield experience. This development will likely lead to the militarization of RWE combat sports networks and can have serious implications for threats to Jewish, Islamic, LGTBQ+, and other communities.

Read more:

This article assesses the main strategies, networks, and threat potentials affiliated with the activities of two current key right-wing extremist (RWE) leaders who first met in 2018 at a combat …

04/24/2023

04/24/2023

As we celebrate the 40th anniversary of the American Institute for Contemporary German Studies and look to the future, we are pleased to announce our new name, the American-German Institute.

As the American-German Institute, we rededicate ourselves to our mission—to provide in-depth, actionable analysis that anticipates trends, manages risk, and shapes policy choices—with a new, streamlined brand. The relationship between the United States and Germany is at the heart of what we do, from producing insights to facilitating dialogue, and our new name reflects the centrality of this partnership in addressing the political, social, and economic challenges in our two countries, in the transatlantic relationship, and globally.

Our analysis, events, and programs are available on our new website, americangerman.institute. AGI staff will maintain their current aicgs email addresses. Stay tuned for more updates on our new brand and the 40th anniversary throughout the year.

Learn more: https://americangerman.institute/2023/04/aicgs-is-now-the-american-german-institute/

As the Institute celebrates its 40th anniversary, we are pleased to announce our new name, the American-German Institute. When Steven Muller, then President of Johns Hopkins University, and Robert Gerald …

02/22/2023

Documentary Screening

Monday, March 6, 2023, 4:00pm-6:00pm, at AICGS

Insecurity, mortal danger, and the longing for peaceful coexistence. In the documentary “Open Doors,” three refugees tell their stories and demonstrate their will to survive by leaving their homes and arriving somewhere uncertain. Refugees share the story of their escape, fears, and challenges along their journey and their arrival in Germany. It becomes clear from this film that the challenges did not end at their arrival. This film also features migrants’ reports on phases of disorientation, adapting, and belonging. Questions like “Where am I, who am I, what am I, or what does my future look like?” are asked by all the protagonists. Please join us on Monday, March 6, 2023, for the screening and roundtable discussion with the film's director Ms. Becky Taylor Hellwig.

Register: https://www.aicgs.org/events/2023/03/open-doors-documentary/

Screening and Roundtable Discussion Insecurity, mortal danger, and the longing for peaceful coexistence. In the documentary “Open Doors,” three refugees tell their stories and demonstrate their will to survive by …

02/14/2023

New Podcast Episode: Episode 76: Energy, Trade, and Security—Germany’s Expanded Zeitenwende with FDP Caucus Leader Christian Dürr

On this episode of the Zeitgeist, our guest is FDP Bundestag Caucus Leader Christian Dürr. He and AICGS President Jeff Rathke discuss how Germany has reset its energy policy, the future of trade in a global environment increasingly defined by strategic competition, and how Germany is addressing the threats to its security stemming from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. What lessons has Germany taken from its successful efforts to cut energy dependency on Russia and how might it help the country’s transition to green, net-zero energy? To what extent has the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act affected U.S.-German trade, and is it possible to rejuvenate the transatlantic economic partnership? What are the expectations for Germany’s new Minister of Defense Boris Pistorius? How can Germany balance rebuilding the Bundeswehr while continuing to provide military support to Ukraine?

Listen: https://www.aicgs.org/2023/02/episode-76-energy-trade-and-security-germanys-expanded-zeitenwende-with-fdp-caucus-leader-christian-durr/

01/27/2023

Partisan Divides and Popular Fronts

Benjamin Carter Hett, Hunter College and the Graduate Center, CUNY

In the morning, a tense group of politicians, who did not much like or trust one another, gathered outside the office of Reich President Paul von Hindenburg. Three of them came from the National Socialist Party, but the others were men of the traditional conservative establishment, who felt themselves forced into an unattractive deal with the radical newcomers. Down to the last minute, they bickered about the terms of that deal. Finally, the president’s state secretary lost patience and told the politicians they could not keep the president waiting any longer. A grudging deal was struck, the door opened, and the president gave the new cabinet ministers their oaths of office.

“We are in the Wilhelmstrasse,” the new government’s propagandist wrote that night in his diary. “Like a fairy tale.” His name was Joseph Goebbels. That night Goebbels organized a torchlight parade of the party faithful. His boss, of course—the newly sworn chancellor of the German Reich—was Adolf Hi**er.

We are pleased to inaugurate the AICGS 40th Anniversary series with this article, which coincides with the 90th anniversary of the N**i seizure of power (Machtergreifung) when Hi**er was appointed chancellor on January 30th, 1933, as well as with Holocaust Memorial Day on January 27th, the 78th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz. Read more: https://www.aicgs.org/2023/01/partisan-divides-and-popular-fronts/

We are pleased to inaugurate the AICGS 40th Anniversary series with the following article, which coincides with the 90th anniversary of the N**i seizure of power (Machtergreifung) when Hi**er was appointed chancellor …

12/09/2022

Botschafterin Gutmann: "The showed how transatlantic partnership can animate the future. Wonderful to brainstorm with Jeff Rathke from the American Institute for Contemporary German Studies on ideas for next year’s forum in the United States."

12/02/2022

Dortmund & Buffalo: Reflections on Social Divisions & Questions of Identity in Germany and the United States

In March and June 2022, the second cohort of the AICGS Social Divisions and Questions of Identity program convened in Dortmund, Germany, and Buffalo, New York, to explore communities, cultures, and group dynamics in these rust-belt sister cities. This StoryMap, written by the participants in the project, shares the group’s observations, insights, and thoughts for the future.

Read more: https://www.aicgs.org/2022/12/dortmund-buffalo/

Reflections on Social Divisions & Questions of Identity in Germany and the United States In March and June 2022, the second cohort of the AICGS Social Divisions and Questions of …

12/01/2022

Feet to the Fire: Critique, Accountability, and Evolution in Germany’s Emerging Security Policy Debate

by Hari Choudhari, AICGS/Halle Foundation Intern

If, after his Zeitenwende speech on February 27, Chancellor Olaf Scholz believed he had done enough to cement his legacy as the arbiter of Germany’s new security policy, he would have been sorely mistaken. Criticism of his government’s sluggish progress towards arms provision to Ukraine has permeated recent German media and political discourse, with the loudest voices originating from his own party and coalition partners.

Read more: https://www.aicgs.org/2022/12/feet-to-the-fire/

Critique, Accountability, and Evolution in Germany’s Emerging Security Policy Debate If, after his Zeitenwende speech on February 27, Chancellor Olaf Scholz believed he had done enough to cement his legacy …

11/29/2022

is here! Can you invest in the German-American partnership by supporting AICGS today? AICGS is a policy research center dedicated to better understanding the challenges facing Germany and the United States together. This year, AICGS has held over 25 events; published over 100 podcasts, articles, and publications; hosted 10 fellows, and engaged 48 young leaders in this relationship. Our numbers show that our small team has a big impact, and your continued support helps make this possible.

Give today: https://www.aicgs.org/support/

11/15/2022

U.S. Department of State Announces Partnership with AICGS for U.S.-German Futures Forum

The U.S. Department of State will partner with the American Institute for Contemporary German Studies at Johns Hopkins University (AICGS) for the U.S.-German Futures Forum. The inaugural Futures Forum took place in Münster, Germany, on November 2-3 on the topic of “The Future of Democracy in a Digital World,” hosted by the German Federal Foreign Office and Bertelsmann Stiftung. This innovative forum brings together key decision makers from the public and private sectors along with experts and emerging leaders to address crucial global challenges and recommend shared solutions.

https://www.aicgs.org/2022/11/u-s-german-futures-forum-u-s-department-of-state-announces-partnership-with-american-institute-for-contemporary-german-studies-at-johns-hopkins-university/

The U.S. Department of State will partner with the American Institute for Contemporary German Studies at Johns Hopkins University (AICGS) for the U.S.-German Futures Forum. The inaugural Futures Forum took …

10/26/2022

Join our team!

AICGS is seeking an Operations Coordinator to support the financial and administrative operations of the Institute. The Operations Coordinator at AICGS works closely with the Director of Finance and Operations to provide day-to-day administrative support to AICGS staff and fellows.

Learn more and apply today: https://www.aicgs.org/job/operations-coordinator/

08/18/2022

We're hiring!

AICGS is looking for a Program Coordinator to manage its seminars, workshops, conferences, and symposia within the Foreign & Security Policy and Society, Culture & Politics Programs.

Learn more and apply today!
http://ow.ly/bMYW50Knl8g

07/27/2022

AICGS is now accepting applications for the DAAD/AICGS Research Fellowship Program in 2023.

The DAAD/AICGS Research Fellowship Program, funded by a generous grant from the Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst (DAAD), is designed to bring both senior and junior scholars and specialists working on key issues of central importance to the German-American relationship to AICGS for research stays of between two to four consecutive months each. AICGS offers several fellowships, which include a monthly stipend of up to €3,204 (depending on the seniority of the applicant); transportation to and from Washington, DC; financial support for research-related travel to institutions within the DAAD center network (Centers for German and European Studies) in North America; and office space at the Institute.

The deadline to apply is October 1, 2022. For more information on the fellowship and how to apply, visit our website: https://www.aicgs.org/job/daad-aicgs-research-fellowship-program/

The DAAD/AICGS Research Fellowship Program, funded by a generous grant from the Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst (DAAD), is designed to bring both senior and junior scholars and specialists working on key issues of central importance to the …

05/16/2022

Join us in New York City on May 26 for our symposium

Germany and the United States: Partners in Shaping a New International Order?

Thursday, May 26, 2022, 10:00 am - 1:00 pm, Deutsche Bank Center

Keynote remarks by Tobias Lindner, Minister of State, German Federal Foreign Office

and panel discussions with Sheri Berman, Professor of Political Science, Barnard College; John Lipsky, Peter G. Peterson Distinguished Scholar, Kissinger Center for Global Affairs, Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS); Brett Ryan, Senior U.S. Economist, Deutsche Bank, and Ellen Ueberschär, President, Heinrich Böll Foundation

The transatlantic agenda for President Joe Biden and Chancellor Olaf Scholz was already ambitious. When the two leaders met in February 2022 as Russia massed troops on the Ukrainian border, they also discussed managing global competition with China, recovering from the pandemic, and using transatlantic formats to support democracies around the world. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, followed by Chancellor Scholz’s announced Zeitenwende in German foreign policy, has reinforced the need for a strong German-American partnership in a world in flux. This AICGS symposium will examine how transatlantic cooperation can address the challenges we face at home and abroad.

View the agenda and register: https://www.aicgs.org/events/2022/05/germany-and-the-united-states-partners-in-shaping-a-new-international-order/

AICGS Symposium The transatlantic agenda for President Joe Biden and Chancellor Olaf Scholz was already ambitious. When the two leaders met in February 2022 as Russia massed troops on the …

05/09/2022

AICGS contributor and The Passport as Home: Comfort in Rootlessness author Andrei Markovits has written a new article for Tocqueville 21. Read "The Current “Bouleversement” in the German Public’s Political Perceptions: Smoke and Mirrors or Real Change?" on their blog: https://tocqueville21.com/tribunes/the-current-bouleversement-in-the-german-publics-political-perceptions-smoke-and-mirrors-or-real-change/

There can be no doubt that February 24, 2022 will enter into the annals of caesura-creating dates alongside such perennials as September 1, 1939, December 7, 1941, November 9, 1989 […]

05/04/2022

Transatlantic Security Strategies: Germany, Europe, and the United States

Thursday, May 5, 2022, 9:00 – 10:15 am EDT // 15:00 – 16:15 CEST

On February 27, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced a Zeitenwende—a Sea Change in German security and defense policy—in response to Russia’s aggression against Ukraine. The threats to thirty years of European order underscore the importance of the strategic adaptation of the transatlantic community. This year, NATO will adopt a new Strategic Concept, and the European Union has approved its Strategic Compass. In the United States, the Biden administration will release its new strategic documents. Germany’s governing coalition has launched the process to develop a National Security Strategy, as promised in the coalition agreement.

At this crucial moment, AICGS will convene a webinar to assess Germany’s view of its role in European security and the expectations from the European and transatlantic partners for Germany’s more robust defense policy. Where will Berlin place its national priorities? How do the NATO and EU strategies interact? How should Germany’s leadership role evolve?

Register: https://www.aicgs.org/events/2022/05/transatlantic-security-strategies/

05/03/2022

Public Health and Public Trust: Transatlantic Challenges in Health Policy

Wednesday, May 4, 2022, 11:00 am - 12:00 pm EDT // 17:00 - 18:00 CEST

As the COVID-19 pandemic has illustrated, public trust in government decision-makers is as important as public health policies. In the United States and Germany, health experts were thrown into the limelight as they advised politicians on strategies to mitigate the spread of the novel coronavirus. Changing messaging and policies, resentment toward regulations that restricted travel and behavior, and a misunderstanding of how exactly public health experts advised the government on policies all contributed to a growing distrust of not only health experts and policymakers, but democratic processes in general. How can the United States and Germany build better communications infrastructure that supports public health and ultimately trust in leadership? How have health care experts and workers been affected, and what can be done to support them? How can governments lift the veil on decision-making processes to restore faith in democratic institutions? What transatlantic lessons can be learned from these shared experiences?

Register: https://www.aicgs.org/events/2022/05/public-health-and-public-trust/

Transatlantic Challenges in Health Policy As the COVID-19 pandemic has illustrated, public trust in government decision-makers is as important as public health policies. In the United States and Germany, health …

05/02/2022

Global Infodemic: Transatlantic Communities and Disinformation

Tuesday, May 3, 2022, 1:00 - 2:00 pm EDT // 19:00 - 20:00 CEST

Disinformation campaigns are nothing new; foreign and domestic actors have used such campaigns to influence voter behavior and recruit followers to political extremes. Following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, similar tactics were used to push false information about the virus, its origins, and national and international health policies. Since its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Russia has also waged a disinformation war at home and abroad. This AICGS webinar will examine various threats that disinformation poses to the United States and Germany. What limits the government’s regulation of information? What tools are available in our liberal democratic societies to counteract the spread of disinformation?

Register: https://www.aicgs.org/events/2022/05/global-infodemic/

Transatlantic Communities and Disinformation Disinformation campaigns are nothing new; foreign and domestic actors have used such campaigns to influence voter behavior and recruit followers to political extremes. Following the outbreak …

04/13/2022

German Policymakers Beyond the Cabinet

by Eric Langenbacher, Senior Fellow; Director, Society, Culture & Politics Program, AICGS

Similar to any modern democratic political system, power in Germany is concentrated in the cabinet—currently with fifteen ministers controlling various policy areas and respective bureaucracies. There is, of course, also the chancellor exercising oversight over the entire government and setting the policy course (Richtlinienkompetenz) and a rather powerful minister-level head of the chancellery (Wolfgang Schmidt). Within this cabinet of seventeen, there is also an explicit and implicit hierarchy. The vice chancellor, who always has his/her own portfolio—presently Robert Habeck with the Economics Ministry–comes just after the chancellor, followed by the powerful finance minister, the interior minister, and the foreign minister. (The British tellingly deem these ministries the Great Offices of State.) And the politicians who hold these offices are usually the most prominent politicians from their respective parties, exemplified by FDP leader and Finance Minister Christian Lindner. But this is not always the case as shown by current Interior Minister Nancy Faeser, who was little known outside of her home state of Hesse until taking over this powerful portfolio.

Read more: https://www.aicgs.org/2022/04/german-policymakers-beyond-the-cabinet/

Similar to any modern democratic political system, power in Germany is concentrated in the cabinet—currently with fifteen ministers controlling various policy areas and respective bureaucracies. There is, of course, also …

04/11/2022

The Zeitgeist Episode 54: Diverse Communities, Questions of Identity, Polarization of Societies

with Dillon Cathro, Elizaveta Firsova, and Elizabeth Hotary

On this episode of The Zeitgeitst, AICGS President Jeff Rathke talks with participants in the AICGS project on social divisions in Germany and the United States, which recently visited the German city of Chemnitz. Elizaveta Firsova, research associate and PhD student at the Institute for Didactics of Democracy at Leibniz University of Hanover, Dillon Cathro, Community Research Coordinator for the University of Michigan School of Social Work, and Elizabeth Hotary, AICGS Program Officer for Foreign & Security Policy and Society, Culture & Politics shared their impressions and findings. The AICGS project “Social Divisions and Questions of Identity in Germany and the United States” seeks to establish new connections within and between communities. In Chemnitz, participants from Germany and the United States met with representatives of local government and civil society organizations to learn about the experience of social and economic changes and the challenges for politics and society. How has Chemnitz tried to attract growth amid loss of industry, demographic decline, and a growing far-right movement in society and government? Elizaveta Firsova and Dillon Cathro discuss initiatives in Chemnitz to promote a diverse and inclusive society in Saxony’s third-largest city.

Listen: https://www.aicgs.org/2022/04/episode-54-diverse-communities-questions-of-identity-polarization-of-societies/

On this episode of The Zeitgeitst, AICGS President Jeff Rathke talks with participants in the AICGS project on social divisions in Germany and the United States, which recently visited the …

03/28/2022

There's still time to register! Join AICGS and Georgetown Government Department for a conversation with the President of the German Constitutional Court Stephan Harbarth and Dr. Catherine Lotrionte in-person tomorrow at 6:30 pm on Georgetown's campus:

President of the German Federal Constitutional Court Stephan Harbarth, in conversation with Dr. Catherine Lotrionte, will discuss current dynamics of constitutional law and the similarities and differences between the German …

03/21/2022

Upcoming Event | Tuesday, March 29, 2022, 6:30-8:00 pm EDT

President of the German Federal Constitutional Court Stephan Harbarth, in conversation with Dr. Catherine Lotrionte, will discuss current dynamics of constitutional law and the similarities and differences between the German and the American legal systems and constitutional jurisprudence. He will delve into the notion of a “living constitution,” what this means in the German context, and how it compares to interpretations in the United States. Other topics might include the relationship between the Constitutional Court and the Court of Justice of the European Union, the jurisprudence around vaccination mandates, and the new precedent of intergenerational justice as exemplified in the Court’s 2021 ruling necessitating changes to the German government’s climate legislation.

More information and registration: https://www.aicgs.org/events/2022/03/living-up-to-our-constitutions/

President of the German Federal Constitutional Court Stephan Harbarth, in conversation with Dr. Catherine Lotrionte, will discuss current dynamics of constitutional law and the similarities and differences between the German …

03/16/2022

The German Approach to the COVID-19 Pandemic: Failure or Success?

by Johanna Siegert, University of Fulda, and Sophie Stützle, University of Bremen

As we are heading into the third year of the COVID-19 pandemic, we must admit that the Coronavirus remains a sticky challenge—locally and globally. As of the beginning of March 2022, Germany is reporting a seven-day incidence rate of 1439. By the time you are reading this article, the number most likely will have increased. Almost 400 million people have been infected worldwide thus far. It is a good time to take a deeper, critical look at different approaches to the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic in Germany and beyond and to ask: What can we learn today that will prepare us for tomorrow? What can we learn by looking across borders?

Over the past two years, countries within the European Union (EU) have continuously found themselves in the position of becoming COVID epicenters. They differ widely in terms of public health measures, such as vaccination rates, monitoring, testing capacities, and generally the implementation of “non-pharmaceutical-interventions,” such as mandates for wearing masks. Vaccination rates range from 89.4 percent and 80.9 percent in the western European countries Portugal and Spain to 41.4 percent and 29 percent in the eastern European countries of Romania and Bulgaria. With a population of nearly 75 percent fully vaccinated citizens, the vaccination rate in Germany certainly is not at a rate where both health experts and the government want it to be. The explanation for such low vaccination rates turns out to be quite complex.

Read more: https://www.aicgs.org/2022/03/the-german-approach-to-the-covid-19-pandemic/

02/24/2022

The End of Europe as We Know It? Germany’s Obligation to Reinforce Europe’s Political-Security Order

by Jeffrey Rathke, AICGS President

Just a few days ago in Munich, Western leaders proudly proclaimed their solidarity in the Russia crisis and their resolve to impose massive consequences in response to any Russian aggression against Ukraine. It was an impressive demonstration from countries that since the 2014 Russian invasion of Ukraine often settled for half-measures. But the Munich solidarity in many ways was inwardly directed—a commitment to act in unison within NATO and the European Union to impose punishment after a potential Russian attack. Only for some did it extend to assisting Kyiv in bolstering its self-defense capacity, as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy bitterly reminded them.

There will be enough time for analysis, recriminations, and self-criticism: Western policy has failed to deter Russia from a brutal, comprehensive assault on its peaceful Ukrainian neighbor and the decades-old foundation of peace in Europe. But most important is to translate this shock into action and resolve, nowhere more urgently needed than in Germany, and to communicate the need for shared sacrifice among Western publics that will be crucial to sustaining a long-term reconstruction of deterrence in Europe.

Read more: https://www.aicgs.org/2022/02/the-end-of-europe-as-we-know-it/

Germany’s Obligation to Reinforce Europe’s Political-Security Order Just a few days ago in Munich, Western leaders proudly proclaimed their solidarity in the Russia crisis and their resolve to impose massive …

01/27/2022

On the Possibilities and Pitfalls of German Holocaust Memory Today

by Michael Rothberg, University of California, Los Angeles

In the past week, we marked the eightieth anniversary of the Wannsee Conference, in which N**i bureaucrats coordinated the murder of millions of European Jews in a beautiful villa outside Berlin, and the seventy-seventh anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, the largest of the N**i killing centers. With each anniversary, the number of eyewitnesses of the events of the Second World War and Holocaust gets smaller. Such anniversaries are not only occasions for remembering, but occasions for reflecting on how and why we remember. Such reflection is especially urgent in today’s Germany, as it is in many other societies around the world.

Read more: https://www.aicgs.org/2022/01/on-the-possibilities-and-pitfalls-of-german-holocaust-memory-today/

In the past week, we marked the eightieth anniversary of the Wannsee Conference, in which N**i bureaucrats coordinated the murder of millions of European Jews in a beautiful villa outside …

01/24/2022

Deadline in One Week: Apply for the AICGS Project: Social Divisions and Questions of Identity in Germany and the United States

AICGS is recruiting sixteen participants (eight from Germany, eight from the U.S.) per year who have been active in the service of communities that have experienced societal division and/or marginalization in the United States and Germany to participate in its project “Social Divisions and Questions of Identity in Germany and the United States.” Participants ideally will be involved in regional politics, schools and education, civil society organizations, the media, or social and economic efforts that benefit their communities. The deadline for applications is January 31, 2022.

Learn more: https://www.aicgs.org/job/aicgs-project-social-divisions-and-questions-of-identity-in-germany-and-the-united-states/

AICGS is recruiting sixteen participants who have been active, professionally or on a voluntary basis, in the service of communities that have experienced societal division and/or marginalization in the U.S. and Germany.