German Envoy Says Bilateral Relations on Mend by Larry Luxner Germanyís traditional postwar friendship with the United Statesóseverely strained over the recent crisis in Iraqóseems to be back on track following a Sept. 24 meeting in New York between President Bush and German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder. ìWhat that session did was eliminate, once and for all, the difficulties that had arisen because of Iraq,î said Germanyís ambassador in Washington, Wolfgang Ischinger. ìBoth leaders agreed to put these difficulties behind them and move forward together.î In addition, Germanyóalong with France and Russiaóagreed to drop their opposition to a U.S.-led multinational force in Iraq mandated by the United Nations. Earlier this year, the leaders of all three countries loudly protested the Bush administrationís plans to invade Iraq, insisting it should give U.N. weapons inspectors more time to do their job. On the other hand, Great Britain, Spain and a number of Eastern European nations supported the idea of going to war and getting rid of Saddam Hussein. Ignoring the anti-war pleas of millions of demonstrators in Europeóas well as in the United StatesóBush attacked Iraq anyway, without backing from the U.N. Security Co uncil. Now, half a year after the White House declared ìmajor hostilities over,î Ischinger insisted that German-American relations have finally returned to what they had been for many years: ìA well-oiled machine that works quite effectively across a wide spectrum of issues, from trade and investment to the fight against terrorism to such issues as how to promote stability in Eastern Europe.î Before assuming his current job, Ischinger, 57, spent nearly a decade as a senior official within the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs. ìI knew Washington quite well, even before arriving as ambassador,î he told The Washington Diplomat in a lengthy interview. ìI served here in the 1970s and early 1980s, during the final years of the Carter administration. I entertained close contacts with American diplomats, and my counterpart at the State Department was Strobe Talbott,î the former deputy secretary of state. Yet Ischinger has been in crisis-management mode literally since his first day on the job. ìMy wife and I flew into Washington on Sept. 10, 2001, and 9/11 was supposed to be my first working day,î he recalled. ìWhat a working day it turned out to be. From my office window, I could actually see the black cloud of smoke rising from the Pentagon.î But the envoy is proud to say that Germany responded to the shock and horror of 9/11 like no other nation. ìWithin a few weeks we were able to collectóspontaneously from German individuals and companiesóalmost $60 million for the families who had lost loved ones. I established the German-American Solidarity Fund through our embassy, and we were able to make generous donations to the New York Fire Department and other organizations,î Ischinger said. ìAs the German ambassador, it was an immensely rich and rewarding experience to see Americans understand that Germany was trying to repay a little of the debt which we believe we owe America for having stood by our side during the Cold War.î Just as important Ischinger said was that shortly after 9/11, ìGermany departed from what had been its traditional policy of not playing a major role in overseas military activities. We decided that the attack on the World Trade Center needed to be interpreted not just as an attack on the United States, but on the entire free world. Thatís why we decided to deploy German troops in Afghanistan.î At the moment, some 3,000 German soldiers are stationed in that Central Asian countryónot to mention a German naval contingent in the Indian Oceanóbut no German troops are serving in Iraq, and none are likely to. Even so, Ischinger says it is important that ìregardless of how much we disagreed with America, thatís not the issue anymore. The chancellor said we have a stake in making sure America doesnít fail with its mission in Iraq, because instability in that region would directly affect our own national security interests.î And the way not to fail, he suggested, ìis to give the Iraqi people a sense of ownership and national identity and offer them as quickly as possible the opportunity to take the future into their own hands, free from foreign domination.î At the height of the standoff in the U.N. Security Council, anti-French sentiment rose to new levels in the United States, with members of Congress calling on Americans to boycott French wines and replace french fries with ìfreedom fries.î Yet there was never much anti-German sentiment, despite the Nazi legacy of World War II and the fact that Germany opposed unilateral U.S. military action in Iraq just as forcefully as France did. Asked why no one in Washington demanded that the United States punish Germany by boycotting Lufthansa, Volkswagen or other German companies, Ischinger agreed that the ìpolitical frustrations associated with our differences of opinion didnít translate into economic losses for German businesses.î One reason, the ambassador suggested, is that more than 7 million American servicemen and their families have been stationed in Germany since the 1950s, and ìmore than 40 million Americans define themselves as having at least partly a German heritage. That has been an asset to our bilateral relationship, and maybe thatís why the difficulties werenít so pronounced in our case.î Another possibility is that Germany, unlike France, isnít a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council, meaning that Berlin doesnít carry as much weight as Paris does in global affairs. That, Ischinger said, needs to change. ìMy government shares the view of many governments that the composition of the Security Council does not accurately reflect the reality of the world in 2003,î he said, pointing out that the councilís five permanent membersóthe United States, Russia, Great Britain, France and Chinaówere chosen in the aftermath of World War II. Ischinger says that these days, Germany as well as Japan, Brazil and India would merit permanent seats based on their sheer population and economic power. ìThere should be an attempt to reform the Security Council and adapt the membership to current realities. If that were done, we believe that Germanyówith 82 million people and one of the worldís top three exporting nationsówould be one of the candidates for a permanent seat,î Ischinger explained. ìClearly, Germany plays a significant role in the world economy, not to mention our ability to participate in peacekeeping activities. We have almost 10,000 soldiers deployed around the world today.î Iraq is hardly the only issue where Washington and Berlin donít see eye to eye. The U.S. trade embargo of Cuba and the Bush administrationís rejection of the Kyoto Protocol on global warming are a few other examples of disagreement. ìWe happen to believe that global warming is a fact, and that the world needs to take action because its effects will be quite devastating for our generation and future generations,î Ischinger said. ìOn this, the U.S. is in serious disagreement not just with Germany but practically all of Europe.î Regarding Cuba, he said, ìWe are very concerned about the human rights situation there. We condemned the recent crackdowns and the executions that took place not long ago, and in that, weíre not far from where the U.S. stands. On the other hand, the embargo hasnít produced much in terms of desired change, so we believe that it should be reviewed. And many members of Congress and the American public share that view.î Ischinger points out that one issue where the United States and Germany have come closer together in recent months is Iran. ìWe tended to disagree over how to deal with Iran, but in the last few months, we have become united in the determination to make sure Iran will not become another country with nuclear military capability.î Likewise, with regard to continuing violence in the Middle East, Ischinger said Germany has taken on a leading role within the European Union to push the Israelis and Palestinians toward a peaceful resolution of their differences. ìWe all recognize that if we want progress to be achieved in the Mideast, it will happen only under strong U.S. leadership,î Ischinger said. ìNo one in Europe believes that U.S. leadership could be replaced by anyone else. It is our strong hope that the Bush administration and future administrations will pursue this issue with the greatest possible determination.î Germanyís position on the Middle East is influenced to a large extent by the ghosts of its tortured past. Ischinger said that ìwhen you consider the horrible legacy of the Nazi period and the Holocaust, it is almost a miracle that today, the relati onship between Germany and Israel is one of partnership and intense cooperation.î An even bigger miracle is the reunification of Germany itself, which took place in 1990 after 45 years of mutual distrust and suspicion. Although areas of the former communist East still have some catching up to do with the rest of the country, thereís no question that Germany today is a dominant economic power in Europeóand one of Americaís most important global allies. Ischinger said all of that could not have happened without help from the United States. ìThe German nation is grateful for key support from America in the quest for unity, which was finally accomplished 13 years ago, with decisive help from President Bushís father and from his entire national security and foreign policy team,î the ambassador said. ìThat gratitude is not forgotten by Germans and is a bond that will survive the occasional tension that weíve had and Iím sure weíll have again.î Larry Luxner is a contributing writer for The Washington Diplomat.