How did the German Zeitenwende speech redefine Germany´s foreign policy approach to power after the Russian invasion of Ukraine?

Sammanfattning

This thesis analyzes how the German zeitenwende altered the German exercise of power towards Russia. German – Russian relations had since the 1970s been characterized by constructive diplomatic engagement and trade. Though, three days after Russia invaded Ukraine Chancelor Scholz held the famous zeitenwende speech where he labeled Russia as a threat and stated that German would start arming the Bundeswehr. The thesis applies poststructuralist though to emphasize discourse as a means of power. By conducting a Critical Discourse Analysis, the discursive shift constituted by the zeitenwende is established and how the exercise of power has altered. Moreover, subsequent speeches between 2023-2026 are evaluated to assess whether the zeitenwende policy shift happened once or has become institutionalized. Findings suggest that the discursive shift by the zeitenwende has become an established discourse across speeches from 2023-2026. Each of the speeches are intertextually anchored in the zeitenwende speech. A new hegemonic security discourse has thus been established where framing Russia as an enemy and militarization has become normalized. The exercise of power has thus changed from soft power to an increasingly hard power approach.