Berlin.
Scholz wants to forge alliances on his trip to South America. It’s about isolating Putin. But that is not the only motive.
War, crises, competition and climate change – this is how the world situation can be described. For Germany and the European Union, this means that without reliable international partners, it will not be possible to secure prosperity, stability and progress. With a trip to South America, Chancellor Olaf Scholz wants to strengthen political and economic relations with the democratic states of Argentina, Chile and Brazil. Behind this is a new realism in German foreign policy.
While at the turn of the millennium there was an expectation that democracy would spread unstoppably across the globe, the opposite has happened with the rise of populism and authoritarian regimes. The assumption that everyone involved benefits from globalized trade has also been refuted. The global economy is shaped by the struggle for energy and raw materials. Russia’s attack on Ukraine is shaking the international post-war order. Global warming could make parts of the planet uninhabitable.
Ukraine Crisis – The most important news about the war
Chancellor Scholz: The rainforest in view
In view of these challenges, South America has a key role to play. The protection of the Amazon rainforest is considered essential to stop climate change. Scholz is therefore demonstratively placing great hopes in Lula da Silva, who has returned to power in Brazil, even though his first term in office ended in a corruption scandal. Because unlike his right-wing populist predecessor Bolsonaro, Lula wants to stop the deforestation of the jungle.
The Chancellor is pursuing other goals with the South America visit: Scholz not only wants to develop new energy sources as a lesson from the dependence on Russian gas, but also secure Germany’s access to other raw materials. Germany should position itself in such a way that the failure of a supplier no longer plunges the entire country into a crisis. The Chancellor is therefore counting on South America as a producer of green hydrogen. In addition, not only China should strive for the deposits of rare earths in the region.
Ukraine: Why it needs help from the Global South
In the past, Germany had shied away from getting involved in the mining of lithium, for example: “It’s so complicated and so dirty, someone else should do it,” the Chancellor’s environment describes the previous attitude. “We can no longer afford this luxury today if we really want to stand on our own two feet.” The Chancellery is thus formulating a new realism in foreign policy action.
In the search for allies, the view goes beyond the traditional group of Western nations, also because of the war in Ukraine. Scholz knows: In order to isolate Putin internationally, resistance must also come from South America, Africa and Asia. Especially from the states that feel connected to Russia (mostly for historical reasons). In the future, too, it will not be enough if only the old powers in Europe and North America stand up to an imperialist ruler. This, too, is a consequence of the tectonic shifts in geopolitics, which will intensify as the century progresses.
Russia: Joint naval exercise with China and South Africa
It is a wise strategy to approach the countries of the southern hemisphere in a targeted manner in an effort to create a strategic alliance of democracies. However, Scholz must also expect setbacks. In South Africa a few months ago, the chancellor promoted the West’s perspective on the conflict with Russia. Now the country, together with Russia and China, is holding a naval exercise off its coast – of all days on the anniversary of the Russian attack on Ukraine.
More articles from this category can be found here: Politics
