This essay reviews four recent books on Germany's foreign policy with emphasis on the era of Angela Merkel. The evaluation is based on their (a) added value to scholarship on German foreign policy, (b) theoretical sophistication and contribution to IR, and (c) relevance also for the post-Merkel era. I argue that the books bring in valuable insights regarding the enduring, yet also changeable role of anti-militarism and provide knowledgeable analyses of the failure of Germany's policies toward Russia. Importantly, they enrich also broader literatures, especially in their focus on discursive change and state power in the European Union context. I demonstrate that these ideas help us understand Germany's struggle to redefine its role after Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and offer more nuanced analyses of Germany's policies and their specifics, staying clear of treating the country as a priori exceptional.

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理解（后）默克尔时代的德国外交政策——评论文章

这篇文章回顾了最近四本关于德国外交政策的书籍，重点是安格拉·默克尔 (Angela Merkel) 时代。评估基于他们的 (a) 对德国外交政策奖学金的附加值，(b) 理论的复杂性和对 IR 的贡献，以及 (c) 与后默克尔时代的相关性。我认为，这些书带来了关于反军国主义的持久但又多变的作用的宝贵见解，并提供了对德国对俄罗斯政策失败的知识渊博的分析。重要的是，它们还丰富了更广泛的文献，尤其是在它们关注欧盟背景下的话语变化和国家权力方面。我证明这些想法有助于我们理解德国在俄罗斯入侵乌克兰后重新定义其角色的斗争，并对德国进行更细致的分析。