“The secret of politics? Make a good treaty with Russia.”
Former German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck’s advice seems to have resonated with an entire generation of German leaders in the 21st century, from the Social-Democrat Gerhard Schroder to the CDU's Angela Merkel. For years, Germany built its economic ties with Russia, but also simultaneously its dependence on Vladimir Putin’s increasingly authoritarian and militaristic regime. A German illusion that crashed somewhere in the fields of Ukraine in February 2022.
But Germany is not the only European heavyweight to have indulged itself with these Russian illusions. Across the Rhine, several French presidents, of all political stripes, have also attempted to build ties with Russia in the name of France’s strategic interests. With mixed results at best.
Today we try to understand these Franco-German illusions and their consequences. We are joined by Guy Chazan, Berlin bureau chief at the Financial Times, and Sylvie Kauffmann, columnist for Le Monde and author of Les Aveuglés (2023), a brilliant book on today’s topic!
As always, please rate and review Uncommon Decency on the platform of your choice and send us your comments or questions either on Twitter at @UnDecencyPod or by e-mail at undecencypod@gmail.com. And please consider supporting the show through Patreon to get access to the full episode where we talk in further detail about France and the vindication of Polish fears: https://www.patreon.com/undecencypod.
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104. Regulating AI, with Ian Bremmer & Anu Bradford
103. America First, Europe Alone? with Shashank Joshi & Bruno Tertrais
102. Woke America, Anti-Woke Europe? with Yascha Mounk & Pierre Valentin
101. Munich Recap: Trump's NATO Remarks & Europe's Role in Israel—Decency Deep Dive
99. The Left-Right Divide: A Eulogy? with Rob Ford & François Hublet
98. 2024: European Inflection Point? Decency Deep Dive
97. Geert Wilders and the Rise of Platinum Populism, with Caroline de Gruyter & Ewald Engelen
96. The Strange Death of Spain, with William Chislett & Michael Reid
95. The New Poland, with Marek Matraszek & David Engels
94. The Americanization of Race, with Tomiwa Owolade & Remi Adekoya
93. The Spanish Right's Coalitional Conundrum, the EU's Looming Migration Crisis & Ukraine's Counteroffensive—Decency Deep Dive
92. Who Are Today's Europeans? with Ben Judah
91. Erdoğan's Odds-Defying Presidential Win, with Birol Baskan & Judd King
90. Zelensky's World Tour, Sunak's Comeback & Mitsotakis' Winning Formula—Decency Deep Dive
89. Charles III: Last King of Britain? with Peter Riddell
88. The Rise (and Fall?) of Erdogan, with Ryan Gingeras & Birol Baskan
87. Macron in China, Meloni Magic—Decency Deep Dive [BONUS]
86. The Ghost of Franco & Spain's Memory Wars, with Michael Reid & Nigel Townson
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