CFR's James M. Lindsay remembers Adolf Hitler's announcement in 1935 that he would reintroduce conscription in Germany, and discusses instances when a country should be confronted rather than accommodated.

Italy's budget may matter more than ineffectual Franco-German summitry, but the new agreement between France and Germany on reforming EU rules remains a reckless distraction, says CFR's Sebastian Mallaby.

Sebastian Mallaby explains why Germany should pay more to keep the eurozone intact.

Jonathan Steinberg, professor of modern European History at the Univeristy of Pennsylvania, discusses his book, Bismark: A Life.

This meeting is part of a series hosted with the National History Center featuring prominent historians who will examine the events and times that shaped foreign policy as we know it today.

Jonathan Steinberg, professor of Modern European History at the Univeristy of Pennsylvania, discusses his book, Bismark: A Life.

This meeting is part of a series hosted with the National History Center featuring prominent historians who will examine the events and times that shaped foreign policy as we know it today.

China is hardly the first great power to make authoritarian development look attractive. As Jonathan Steinberg's new biography of Bismarck shows, Wilhelmine Germany did it with ease.

CFR's Director of Studies James Lindsay and Director of the International Institutions and CFR.org Editor Robert McMahon preview major world events in the week ahead.

In this week's podcast: Iowa Republicans cast their ballots in the Ames Straw poll; Vice President Joe Biden visits Asia; The trial of former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak resumes in Cairo; Germany marks the 50th anniversary of the construction of the Berlin Wall.

Obama's former auto czar explains the key to Germany's export boom -- and how the United States can emulate it.

Yanzhong Huang says countries need to work together to deal with food safety challenges in the era of globalization.

Leslie H. Gelb says Germany's economy can teach President Obama about how a nation can succeed with jobs and exports despite high taxes and welfare.

Germany's recent debate regarding immigration is missing an important reality.

As European leaders gather to discuss eurozone reforms, German labor union expert Mehrdad Payandeh discusses the benefits of more European integration, but warns austerity policies could tip Germany and the continent back into recession.

Published in Spiegel, this interview with German Finance Minister Schäuble provides insight into the relationship between Minister Schäuble and his American counterpart, Secretary Geithner, as well as the German position on the latest financial developments like the recent move towards quantitative easing.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel faces dwindling support because of "dithering" on the euro crisis and Germans' opposition to having troops in Afghanistan, says Germany expert William Drozdiak.

In this briefing note, Katinka Barsych examines the shifting relationship between Germany and the EU in the wake of the euro crisis and the ensuing financial aid package.

Mira Kamdar, a senior fellow at the World Policy Institute and an award-winning author, analyzes the rocky relationship between French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Daniel Schäfer asks whether mid-range family owned businesses and industries in Germany that have an interest in trading with Iran undermine western efforts to isolate the Islamic Republic.

Twenty years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, James Goldgeier examines what the occasion meant for the Republican party, and how it has affected the U.S. presidency since.

The fall of the Berlin Wall was not the only significant international development of 1989, writes James Goldgeier. The withdrawal of Soviet troops from Afghanistan and the Tiananmen Square massacre in China signified the emergence of two new international challenges: failed states and illiberal capitalism, each of which has "vexed" the United States for the past two decades.

CFR's Bernard Gwertzman and Serge Schmemann of the International Herald Tribune discuss their role in reporting the fall of the Berlin Wall twenty years ago and the enduring significance of that day.