The elections in Germany are over. The Social Democrats kept their majority by a bare four votes. The German/U.S. relations, especially involving Iraq, were the centerpiece of the campaign with the United States and Bush being bashed daily. Relations are strained between the two countries. I though it especially appropriate that this statement made by a close friend of mine, Volkmar Schultz (SPD), who retired from the Bundestag this September, be presented for your review. He made his first journey to America in 1955 as a young man. Since that time, he has made almost fifty visits to America and has been a moving force in the United States Congress/Bundestag exchange program. He made his last major speech to the Bundestag in August about Trans-Atlantic relations. I believe it is extremely important that people from this country try and understand the German viewpoint. I believe it is especially important that we listen to someone like Volkmar who truly cares about this country and wants to strengthen the relations between the two countries. I have excerpted parts of the speech and only hope that I have done justice to the remarks made by this outstanding member of the Bundestag:
He states: "…next to Germany, the United States remains the country that perplexes me most. That may stem from the occasional disappointments that any lover experiences, but it most probably has more to do with the contradictory traditions of U.S. foreign policy. “
He points out the role played by Congress is grossly underestimated by many Europeans. He states: "Why were the Kyoto Protocol and the International Criminal Court, for example, doomed to rejection, even at the time of the Clinton Administration? Because these agreements had no chance of acceptance by the Senate. What a Congress driven by electoral preoccupations can achieve is demonstrated by the American Servicemembers' Protection Act, which categorically prohibits cooperation with the International Criminal Court on the one hand but calls for international efforts to punish those who are guilty of genocide and crimes against humanity on the other. What about Slobodan Milosevic, for example? This approach is incoherent. It undermines the credibility of the leading Western power and is grist to the mill of America's adversaries. The United States should accept that new types of crime not only require new forms of prosecution but also necessitate the further development of international criminal law. Why do I mention this? Because it shows, ladies and gentlemen, how enormously important it is that the Members of the next German Bundestag and the parliamentarians of other countries should maintain even more intensive and continuous contacts with the U.S. Congress, that we should work hard to develop a network of contacts with our counterparts across the water, with their staff and with the think tanks that advise them. There are strong stone walls to drill through before the European perspective can begin to penetrate."
Volkmar believes that heavy listening has to be done by both sides. "In the long terms, Europe and America can only achieve their aims by working together. This applies to the fight against international terrorism, too. We must keep stressing to the Americans that the battle against hatred and terror, against inhuman dictatorships, against hunger, poverty and disease, cannot possibly be waged by military means alone but also requires sustainable and patient civil strategies. Conversely, we Europeans must appreciate that there will occasionally be situations in which a military option may also be needed. In this case, the division of labor must not be based on the principle that America does all the heavy building work and Europe does the fine plastering. Peace is not won on the battlefield alone, nor can a cheque book guarantee democracy. The solution is a balanced mixture of both elements.”
He states: "So what is our task? We must strengthen Europe, so that it can speak with one voice at crucial moments. This means that we must develop independent civilian and military capabilities to deal with crises. Remember Macedonia! It also means that we must help Russia to create further democratic structures. In doing these things, we shall be building on the wise policies of the past 50 years. Let us also understand, however, that Europe, as a global economic power, cannot simple distance itself from the dirty business of this world; in short, we must learn to look beyond the end of our own noses. Even wise policy needs power, but great power also needs wise policy."
Volkmar Schultz concludes: "We should do well to consider that one of the many facets of transatlantic relations is that they are a complex common learning process…… Nothing endangers transatlantic relations more than indifference."
