If You're Not Scared, You Haven’t Been Paying Attention: Trump, die Radikalisierung der GOP und die Zukunft der US-amerikanischen Demokratie

Der Beitrag diskutiert die Zukunft der US-amerikanischen Demokratie nach dem Ausscheiden Donald J. Trumps aus dem Amt. Mit dem Amtsantritt Bidens scheint Trumps versuchter Selbst-Putsch gescheitert. Der vorliegende Beitrag argumentiert vor dem Hintergrund der Forschung zu demokratischer Regression, dass diese Sichtweise zu optimistisch ist. Erstens ist die Republikanische Partei (GOP) insgesamt mitschuldig am Angriff auf den demokratischen Verfassungsstaat. Zweitens schreitet die Kampagne der GOP, mit undemokratischen Mitteln eine Minderheitsherrschaft zu etablieren und dauerhaft zu sichern, auch nach Trumps Ausscheiden aus dem Amt ungebremst voran. Die Halbzeitwahlen 2022 und die Präsidentschaftswahlen 2024 sind somit entscheidend, ob die USA eine liberale Demokratie bleiben oder in eine Wettbewerbsautokratie degenerieren.The article discusses the future of US democracy after the end of Donald J. Trump’s scandal-ridden presidency, which culminated in a violent attempted self-coup. In contrast to many observers outside the United States who appear to assume that Joe Biden's inauguration marks the failure of the coup attempt, I argue that this view is overly optimistic. First, Trump by no means acted alone but was supported by leading figures in the Republican Party (GOP). Second, the attack on democratic norms and institutions to restore and permanently cement Republican minority rule continues to move forward. The 2022 midterm elections and the 2024 presidential election et the course on whether the United States will return to liberal democracy or degrade into Hungary-style competitive authoritarianism

The Reluctant Peacekeeper: Japan's Ambivalent Stance on UN Peace Operations

The question of overseas deployment of the Self Defence Force (SDF) continues to be one of the most controversial issues in Japan’s foreign policy. This becomes particularly obvious with respect to participation in UN peacekeeping operations. Japan is caught between, on the one hand, the aspiration to contribute to international peace and security and, on the other, the need to adhere to the constitution, which renounces the use of force as an instrument of foreign policy. This has led to strict legal limitations concerning Japan’s participation in peacekeeping missions, resulting in significant practical problems in the field. Despite revisions of the legal framework, Japan’s contribution to peacekeeping activities remains severely limited, particularly with respect to so-called robust peacekeeping. Instead of gradually broadening the SDF’s activities, however, Tokyo would be better advised to strengthen its civilian contribution to peace operations

Taking Stock: The Focal Points of Abe's Foreign Policy

In September 2007, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe resigned after only one year in office. Abe, who had been Chief Cabinet Secretary in the cabinet of Jun’ichiro Koizumi, had gained popularity mainly because of his tough stance towards North Korea, in particular concerning the abduction issue. During Abe’s premiership, foreign policy remained his forte. This article examines the continuities and discontinuities of Abe’s and Koizumi’s foreign policies. Overall, Abe has continued with Koizumi’s agenda of “normalising” Japan’s foreign policy. In spite of his reputation as an ultranationalist and revisionist, however, he has made serious efforts to repair Japan’s strained relations with China and South Korea, which had deteriorated due to Koizumi’s regular visits to the Yasukuni shrine. Furthermore, Abe has fostered strategic relations with India and Australia, and worked to further deepen the alliance with the United States

Social Media, Gender and the Mediatisation of War: Exploring the German Armed Forces’ Visual Representation of the Afghanistan Operation on Facebook

Studies on the mediatisation of war point to attempts of governments to regulate the visual perspective of their involvements in armed conflict – the most notable example being the practice of ‘embedded reporting’ in Iraq and Afghanistan. This paper focuses on a different strategy of visual meaning-making, namely, the publication of images on social media by armed forces themselves. Specifically, we argue that the mediatisation of war literature could profit from an increased engagement with feminist research, both within Critical Security/Critical Military Studies and within Science and Technology Studies that highlight the close connection between masculinity, technology and control. The article examines the German military mission in Afghanistan as represented on the German armed forces’ official Facebook page. Germany constitutes an interesting, and largely neglected, case for the growing literature on the mediatisation of war: its strong antimilitarist political culture makes the representation of war particularly delicate. The paper examines specific representational patterns of Germany’s involvement in Afghanistan and discusses the implications which arise from what is placed inside the frame of visibility and what remains out of its view

Militarizing antimilitarism? Exploring the gendered representation of military service in German recruitment videos on social media

This article analyzes the gendered representation of military service in the German YouTube series Die Rekruten (DR) (The Recruits), a popular web series produced on behalf of the German armed forces (Bundeswehr) for recruitment purposes, which accompanies 12 navy recruits during their basic training. The article is situated within research on masculinity and the military, in particular military recruitment. It supplements current scholarship by studying a previously neglected case that is of particular interest given Germany’s antimilitarist culture, which should make military recruitment and military public relations more difficult. The article asks how military service is represented in DR, what its discursive effects are, and what role (if any) masculinity plays in this process. We find support for recent feminist research on military masculinities (including in military recruitment) that emphasizes ambiguity and contradiction. What distinguishes the construction of military masculinity in DR from, for example, recruitment advertisements in the United States or the United Kingdom is its markedly civil character. This not only broadens the military’s appeal for a more diverse audience but also increases the legitimacy of the military and its activities. It does so by concealing the violence that has for the past two decades also been a very real part of what the Bundeswehr does

Bundeswehr und deutsche Gesellschaft: Die Berliner Republik zwischen Militarisierung und Normalisierung

The chapter intervenes in current public debates about German security policy. Many observers in the media have argued that the Russian invasion has triggered a revolution in German military affairs, de facto putting an end to German pacifism. The chapter takes issue with this argument. It draws on public opinion polls and prior research of parliamentary debates in the German Bundestag to show that neither German foreign policy elites nor the German public could ever aptly be described as pacifist in a strict sense; neither elites nor the general public as a whole were ever fundamentally opposed to the military. And while German society could (mostly) be adequately described as antimilitarist (reluctant to get militarily involved abroad), since the 1990s there has been a significant shift among foreign policy elites towards increased support for military operations outside the NATO area. Even public opinion, commonly seen as sceptical of military involvement, is much more differentiated than commonly assumed, in particular among the media. Thus, while the German government has only haltingly and somewhat hesitantly expanded its military support for Ukraine, this is does not appear to be primarily a result of a lack of public support

Vier Jahre Aktionsplan "Zivile Krisenprävention" - war das alles?

Am 16. Juli 2008 verabschiedete das Bundeskabinett den zweiten Umsetzungsbericht zum Aktionsplan "Zivile Krisenprävention, Konfliktlösung und Friedenskonsolidierung". Mit diesem Aktionsplan, der die Koordination im Politikfeld Krisenprävention verbessern sollte, hat die rot-grüne Bundesregierung 2004 ein Instrument geschaffen, das internationalen Vorbildcharakter hat. Das Besondere am deutschen Aktionsplan ist, dass er zivile Aspekte der Krisenprävention betont und zivilgesellschaftliche Akteure systematisch einbindet. Vier Jahre nach seiner Verabschiedung harrt der Aktionsplan allerdings immer noch seiner konsequenten Umsetzung. Insbesondere die mangelhafte Ausstattung der neu geschaffenen Institutionen mit Kompetenzen und Ressourcen sowie das sinkende politische Interesse leisten dem drohenden Ende einer koordinierten zivilen Krisenpräventionspolitik Vorschub. Angesichts der politischen und administrativen Zurückhaltung der schwarz-roten Bundesregierung, den Aktionsplan "Zivile Krisenprävention" umzusetzen, kann nur eine starke parlamentarische Initiative einen Neustart für den Aktionsplan ermöglichen. In Anbetracht immer komplexerer friedenspolitischer Herausforderungen wie etwa in Afghanistan sind nachhaltige Erfolge nur zu erzielen, wenn die Koordination zwischen allen beteiligten Akteuren verbessert wird. (GIGA

Militarizing Antimilitarism? Exploring the Gendered Representation of Military Service in German Recruitment Videos on Social Media

This article analyzes the gendered representation of military service in the German YouTube series Die Rekruten (DR) (The Recruits), a popular web series produced on behalf of the German armed forces (Bundeswehr) for recruitment purposes, which accompanies 12 navy recruits during their basic training. The article is situated within research on masculinity and the military, in particular military recruitment. It supplements current scholarship by studying a previously neglected case that is of particular interest given Germany’s antimilitarist culture, which should make military recruitment and military public relations more difficult. The article asks how military service is represented in DR, what its discursive effects are, and what role (if any) masculinity plays in this process. We find support for recent feminist research on military masculinities (including in military recruitment) that emphasizes ambiguity and contradiction. What distinguishes the construction of military masculinity in DR from, for example, recruitment advertisements in the United States or the United Kingdom is its markedly civil character. This not only broadens the military’s appeal for a more diverse audience but also increases the legitimacy of the military and its activities. It does so by concealing the violence that has for the past two decades also been a very real part of what the Bundeswehr does

Poststrukturalistische Diskurstheorie und Außenpolitikanalyse: Wie lässt sich Deutschlands wankelmütige Außenpolitik zwischen Afghanistan und Irak verstehen?

Der vorliegende Beitrag verfolgt zwei Ziele: Zum einen setzt er sich kritisch mit den vorliegenden konstruktivistischen Erklärungen der wankelmütigen deutschen Außenpolitik im Kontext des Afghanistan- und des Irakkriegs (2001-2003) auseinander. Zum zweiten bietet er die hegemoniethoretisch orientierte, poststrukturalistische Diskurstheorie als alternativen Rahmen zur Deutung dieser Politik an und stellt das hieran angelehnte methodische Vorgehen der Hegemonieanalyse dar. Im Kern kritisieren wir an den bisherigen Erklärungsversuchen, dass sie Ideen zumeist als vorgängig gegeben betrachten (nur so ergibt die Rede davon, dass Ideen erklärende Faktoren sein können, ja Sinn) und dann ihre Forschung darauf ausrichten, diese rekonstruierten Ideen mit der stattfindenden Politik abzugleichen. Eine diskurstheoretisch informierte Perspektive, wie wir sie vorschlagen, geht stattdessen einerseits von der Instabilität der Ideen aus und andererseits von der daraus resultierenden Notwendigkeit, die konkreten Kämpfe und Auseinandersetzungen um die je konkrete Artikulation von Bedeutungszusammenhängen genau zu analysieren. Der Blick, der das bessere Verstehen des Wankelmuts erlauben soll, richtet sich also weniger auf die Ideen, sondern auf die konkreten artikulatorischen Kämpfe, die die je relevante Idee immer aufs Neue herstellen. Wir illustrieren dies durch eine beispielhafte Hegemonieanalyse eines Ausschnitts des parlamentarischen Regierungsdiskurses zwischen September 2001 und März 2003