Seminar: German Elections, America First and European Union Scenarios

On Wednesday 2 April 2025, Dr Maren Klein and Dr Scott Burchill led a discussion on the current state of play of geopolitics in Europe and the US after the recent German election.

A group of people attending a seminar in a lecture room with a large screen displaying "German elections 2025"

It's now a month after the 2025 German elections and a new Government is only just taking shape. The elections have come at a very challenging time. With an economy in decline and the vote itself coming a few days after the Munich Security Conference, the primary vote for the CDU/CSU led by Friedrich Merz was not a surprise. While the AfD achieved 20 per cent of the vote, this was not sufficient to shape the leadership outcome. Given this result, what role will Germany play in Europe? Does this foreshadow a return to the days when Germany and France could forge an alliance that shaped broader European decision-making? Or are the more complex dynamics of Europe now providing more space to Italy, Poland and Hungary to shape European policy initiatives?

All of this is shaped by the impact of President Trump's second term and his enthusiasm to end the war in Ukraine. How does his new version of US foreign policy, together with the machinations of his allies such as Elon Musk, influence the dynamics within Europe? What are the implications of the plan to increase massively Europe's expenditure on defence, and to position itself on a warfare platform?

Guest speakers

Dr Maren Klein is an academic and higher education expert with a lifelong interest in international relations and a focus on German, European and EU politics in the international context. A secondary focus of hers is the use of language in politics, democracy and propaganda.

Dr Scott Burchill is Honorary Fellow in International Relations at Deakin University. He is the author of The National Interest in International Relations Theory (Palgrave Macmillan 2005), Misunderstanding International Relations (Palgrave Macmillan 2020) and co-author and editor of Theories of International Relations (5th ed Palgrave Macmillan 2013). He has also taught at Monash University, the University of Melbourne and the University of Tasmania.

02 April 2025

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