In 2015, security and economic crises have forced EU member states to grapple with Germany’s growing leadership role. Since the 2008 global financial crisis, the country has led financial policy decisions in the eurozone while other member nations have struggled to reinvigorate their own economies. At the same time, German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s diplomacy has established Germany as a key European geopolitical power. Yet, both the Greek and Ukraine crises have demonstrated how Germany’s power can polarize the continent and present risks to the European project.

Carnegie–Tsinghua’s Pang Xun will host a panel discussion with Michael Staack and leading Chinese experts. They will examine contributing factors and responses to German primacy in Europe, as well as the broader implications for global security and financial stability.

Michael Staack

Michael Staack is a professor and the director of the Institute of International Relations at Helmut Schmidt University.

Pang Xun

Pang Xun is a resident scholar and the deputy director at the Carnegie–Tsinghua Center for Global Policy, as well as a professor in the Department of International Relations at Tsinghua University.

Xiong Wei

Xiong Wei is the vice chair of the Department of Diplomacy at China Foreign Affairs University. 

Zhao Chen

Zhao Chen is a research fellow at the Institute of European Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

Lai Suetyi

Lai Suetyi is a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of International Relations at Tsinghua University.