Volume VIII – Number I
Daniel N. Nelson
Abstract: The term “Ostpolitik” has become a household term, but while it has repeatedly examined, never has it been properly analyzed how such a break from the status quo of international relations was possible. This article offers an explanation as to how the underlying concept behind Ostpolitik, a conciliatory attitude towards Communist Europe, could across party lines in West Germany. In rejecting the hypothesis that German leadership, as well as leadership in Western Europe, would inevitably orient themselves toward Ostpolitik, the piece focuses on the commonalities of three cohorts, or generations, that would inherit the reins of political leadership in the early 1970s, with an emphasis on political socialization leading to a common worldview. The first of the three was born around the time of World War I and the early Weimar Republic (1910-1920), the second during the Weimar Republic (1920-not later than 1930), and the third after World War II. In analyzing shared experiences in childhood that led to s common, shared political socialization process, this article follows the rise of these politically active cohorts as they moved from new voters, to first time elected officials, to finally taking leadership positions from the outgoing, older generation, culminating with the author’s answer to the main question: How did Ostpolitik emerge as part of West Germany’s foreign policy?
Keywords: Ostpolitik, West Germany, Political Socialization, Europe
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