German-Russian Relations: How to Cope with Moscow’s New Assertiv

called “strategic partnership.” A decade later, the “strategic” partnership was to be supplemented by a “partnership for modernization.” The transition was to be fostered by an expansion of trade and investments (Wandel durch Handel). But Russia’s internal structure, the “Putin system,” has solidified into an political construct sui generis. In the “common European neighborhood,” German-Russian relations are characterized by competition and conflict. Chancellor Merkel has taken the lead in Europe to impose and stick to sanctions on Russia. The lecture will examine the current state and possible development of Germany’s Ostpolitik and Russia policy in the light of the transatlantic challenge.

Professor Hannes Adomeit was born 1942 in Memel, East Prussia, now Klaipeda, Lithuania, was until 2014 Professor at the College of Europe in Warsaw, teaching courses on the EU and Russia.
His academic degrees include, in Germany, an M.A. in Political Science from the Freie Universität in Berlin.
In the U.S., he received an M.A. degree in International Relations, a Certificate in Russian Studies, and a Ph.D. from Columbia University in New York.
Last year, he was appointed Bosch Public Policy Fellow at the Transatlantic Academy in Washington, D.C., writing a paper on German-Russian relations under Merkel and Putin.