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{{short description|Normalization of relations between West Germany and Eastern Europe}}

[[Image:Willy Brandt and Nixon.jpg|thumb|right|250px|[[Willy Brandt]] with [[Richard Nixon]]]]

{{For|the "Eastern Politics" of Britain, France, Russia, and Austria in the 19th century|Eastern Question}}

{{Italic title}}

{{use mdy dates|date=December 2015}}

[[File:Bundesarchiv B 145 Bild-F031406-0017, Erfurt, Treffen Willy Brandt mit Willi Stoph.jpg|thumb|250px|[[Willy Brandt]] (left) and [[Willi Stoph]] in [[Erfurt]] 1970, the first encounter of a Federal Chancellor with his East German counterpart, an early step in the [[de-escalation]] of the [[Cold War]]]]

'''''Neue Ostpolitik''''' (German for "new eastern policy"), or '''''Ostpolitik''''' ({{IPA|de|ˈɔstpoliˌtiːk|lang|De-Ostpolitik.ogg}}) for short, was the normalization of relations between the [[West Germany|Federal Republic of Germany]] (FRG, or West Germany) and

[[Eastern Europe]], particularly the [[German Democratic Republic]] (GDR, or East Germany) beginning in 1969. Influenced by [[Egon Bahr]], who proposed "change through [[rapprochement]]" in a 1963 speech at the [[Evangelische Akademie Tutzing]], the policies were implemented beginning with [[Willy Brandt]], fourth [[Chancellor of Germany|Chancellor of the FRG]] from 1969 to 1974,<ref name="brabahr">{{cite news |last1=Schättle |first1=Horst |title=Willy Brandt explains Egon Bahr's formula "Wandel durch Annäherung" of 1963 |url=https://www.willy-brandt-biography.com/historical-sources/videos/wandel-durch-annaeherung-1963/ |agency=Den norsk-tyske Willy Brandt-stiftelsen |publisher=Zeugen des Jahrhunderts |date=December 1988}}</ref> and winner of the 1971 [[Nobel Peace Prize]] for his efforts to place this policy at the acme of the FRG.<ref name="feswdw">{{cite news |title=Weltinnenpolitik der Wirtschaft |url=https://www.fes.de/friedensnobelpreis-50/weltinnenpolitik-der-wirtschaft-1 |publisher=Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung |date=December 2021}}</ref><ref name="bwbnpp">{{cite news |title=50 years Nobel Peace Prize |url=https://willy-brandt.de/en/the-foundation/about-us/50th-anniversary/50-years-nobel-peace-prize-to-willy-brandt/ |access-date=19 February 2023 |publisher=Bundeskanzler-Willy-Brandt-Stiftung d.ö.R.}}</ref>

''Ostpolitik'' was an effort to break with the policies of the [[Christian Democratic Union (Germany)|Christian Democratic Union]] (CDU), which was the elected government of West Germany from 1949 until 1969. The Christian Democrats under [[Konrad Adenauer]] and his successors tried to combat the Communist government of East Germany, while Brandt's Social Democrats tried to achieve a certain degree of cooperation with East Germany.

'''Ostpolitik''' ([[German language|German]] for ''Eastern Politics'') describes the politics of the "Change through Rapprochement" principle, - as verbalised by [[Egon Bahr]] in 1963 - by the effort of [[Willy Brandt]], Chancellor of the [[Federal Republic of Germany]] (West Germany), to normalize his country's relations with [[Eastern Europe]]an nations (including the [[German Democratic Republic]], or East Germany).

The term ''Ostpolitik'' has since been applied to [[Pope Paul VI]]'s efforts to engage Eastern European countries during the same period. The term ''[[Nordpolitik]]'' was also coined to describe similar rapprochement policies between [[North Korea|North]] and [[South Korea]] beginning in the 1980s.

The term's name was a reflection of Germany's decision to look to the east, rather than solely to the west as was the policy since [[Konrad Adenauer]] who was the first [[Chancellor]] of the [[Federal Republic of Germany]].

== Intention ==

Following the end of [[World War II]] in 1945, [[Allied-occupied Germany]] was split into two states: the [[West Germany|Federal Republic of Germany]] (FRG, or West Germany) and the [[East Germany|German Democratic Republic]] (GDR, or East Germany). Initially, both governments claimed that they represented the entire German nation. However, the Federal Republic saw itself as the only German government with democratic legitimacy. Later, at the end of the 1960s, the communist government of the GDR claimed that there was no longer a common German nation as the GDR had established a socialist nation.

The [[Christian Democratic Union (Germany)|Christian Democratic Union]] (CDU) political party dominated West German governments from 1949 to 1969. These governments refused to have any contact with the GDR government due to its undemocratic character, and the [[Hallstein Doctrine]] stipulated that the FRG would withdraw diplomatic contact from any country that established diplomatic relations with the GDR. The first application of the Hallstein Doctrine was in 1957, when the FRG withdrew recognition of [[Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia|Yugoslavia]] after it accepted a GDR ambassador. In the 1960s it became obvious that this policy would not work forever. When the Federal Republic established diplomatic relations with Israel in 1965, the Arab states countered by breaking off relations with the Federal Republic and establishing relations with the GDR.

== Intention and Realisation ==

The goal of the ''Ostpolitik'' of the 1970s was to surmount but not to reverse the existing [[status quo]] between the two German states, which were divided in [[1945]] after [[World War II]], and to ultimately lead to their reunification, while giving up the goal of immediate reunification as a prerequisite to all other decisions.

Even before his election as [[Chancellor of Germany|Chancellor]], Willy Brandt, the [[Social Democratic Party of Germany|Social Democratic]] mayor of [[West Berlin]], argued for and pursued policies that would ease tensions between the two German states, generally in the interest of cross-border commerce. His proposed new ''Ostpolitik'' held that the Hallstein Doctrine did not help to undermine the communist government or even lighten the situation of the Germans in the GDR. Brandt believed that collaboration with the communists would foster German-German encounters and trade that would undermine the communist government over the long term.

Among the elements of Ostpolitik was abandonment of the [[Hallstein Doctrine]] and recognition of the [[Oder-Neisse line]] as the border between [[Germany]] and [[Poland]].

Nonetheless, he stressed that his new ''Ostpolitik'' did not neglect the close ties of the Federal Republic with Western Europe and the United States or its membership in [[NATO]]. Indeed, by the late 1960s, the unwavering stance of the Hallstein Doctrine was actually considered{{by whom|date=September 2013}} detrimental to US interests; numerous American advisors and policymakers, most notably [[Henry Kissinger]], urged Bonn to be more flexible. At the same time, other West European countries entered a period of more daring policy directed to the East.<ref>Helga Haftendorn: ''Deutsche Außenpolitik zwischen Selbstbeschränkung und Selbstbehauptung 1945–2000''. Deutsche Verlags-Anstalt: Stuttgart / München 2001, p. 173–174.

Also important was closer trading relations with Eastern Europe. This helped shore up the faltering communist economies, but it also made visible to the citizens of Eastern Europe the contrast between the successful market economies of the west and the relative poverty of the east.

</ref> When Brandt became Chancellor in 1969, the same politicians now feared a more independent German ''Ostpolitik'', a new "[[Treaty of Rapallo (1922)|Rapallo]]". France feared that West Germany would become more powerful after [[détente]]; Brandt ultimately resorted to pressuring the French government into endorsing his policy by holding out German financial contributions to the European [[Common Agricultural Policy]].<ref>

Helga Haftendorn: ''Deutsche Außenpolitik zwischen Selbstbeschränkung und Selbstbehauptung 1945–2000''. Deutsche Verlags-Anstalt: Stuttgart / München 2001, p. 181.</ref>

== Development Realisation==

The easing of tensions with the East envisioned by ''Ostpolitik'' necessarily began with the [[Soviet Union]], the only Eastern Bloc state with which the Federal Republic had formal diplomatic ties (despite the aforementioned Hallstein Doctrine). In 1970 Brandt signed the [[Treaty of Moscow (1970)|Treaty of Moscow]], renouncing the use of force and recognizing the current European borders. Later that year, Brandt signed the [[Treaty of Warsaw (1970)|Treaty of Warsaw]], in the process formally recognizing the [[People's Republic of Poland]]. The Treaty of Warsaw essentially repeated the Moscow treaty, and in particular reiterated the Federal Republic's recognition of the [[Oder–Neisse line]]. Treaties with other Eastern European countries followed.

Discussions between Brandt and East German leader [[Willi Stoph]] began quickly, but no formal settlement was reached as Brandt was unwilling to recognize the East as a sovereign state. In 1970 the [[Treaty of Moscow]] was signed between West Germany and the Soviets and quickly afterwards treaties with Poland ([[Treaty_of_Warsaw_(1970)|Treaty of Warsaw]] in [[1970]]) and other Eastern Bloc states were signed.

The most controversial agreement was the [[Basic Treaty, (1972)|Basic Treaty]] of 1972 thatwith East Germany, createdestablishing mutualformal recognitionrelations between the [[West_Germany|FRG]] and [[East_Germany|GDR]] as two separateGerman states (thoughfor explicitlythe notfirst astime twosince separate nations)partition. The Thissituation was staunchly opposedcomplicated by Westthe GermanFederal conservativesRepublic's wholongstanding feltclaim theto policyrepresent wouldthe resultentire inGerman anation; permanentChancellor divisionBrandt of Germany;sought to assuagesmooth them,over Brandtthis tookpoint aby veryrepeating toughhis stance1969 atstatement thethat samealthough timetwo againststates radicalexist leftists within Westin Germany, itself.they Thiscannot agreementregard alsoone madeanother it possible for the two states to become members of the [[United Nations]]as soonforeign afterwardscountries.

[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 183-Z1212-049, Döllnsee, Erich Honecker und Helmut Schmidt.jpg|thumb|250px|Brandt's successor [[Helmut Schmidt]] with East German party leader [[Erich Honecker]], [[Döllnsee]] 1981]]

== Current "Ostpolitique" ==

The conservative [[Christian Democratic Union (Germany)|CDU]] opposition party in the [[Bundestag]] refused the Basic Treaty because they thought that the government gave away some Federal positions too easily. They also criticized flaws like the unintentional publishing of the ''Bahr-Papier'', a paper in which Brandt's right hand Egon Bahr had agreed with Soviet diplomat [[Valentin Falin]] on essential issues.<ref>Helga Haftendorn: Deutsche Außenpolitik zwischen Selbstbeschränkung und Selbstbehauptung 1945–2000. Deutsche Verlags-Anstalt: Stuttgart / München 2001, p. 183–184.</ref>

The word ''Ostpolitik'' or "Ostpolitique" (French) was adopted by many languages and now stands for the proverbial "Inspiration through Technology" principle, verbalised by Sebastian Bach in his 1963 speech.

The Brandt government, a coalition of Social Democrats and Free Democrats, lost a number of MPs to the CDU opposition in protest over the Basic Treaty. In April 1972 it even seemed that opposition leader [[Rainer Barzel]] had enough support to become the new Chancellor, but in the parliamentary [[constructive vote of no confidence#1972: Rainer Barzel vs. Willy Brandt (failed vote)|constructive vote of no confidence in April 1972]] he came two votes short. It later emerged that the GDR had paid the two CDU deputies to vote against Barzel.<ref>Helga Haftendorn: Deutsche Außenpolitik zwischen Selbstbeschränkung und Selbstbehauptung 1945–2000. Deutsche Verlags-Anstalt: Stuttgart / München 2001, p. 193.</ref> New [[1972 West German federal election|general elections in November 1972]] gave the Brandt government a victory, and on 11 May 1973 the Federal Parliament approved the Basic Treaty.

The current ([[as of 2005]]) [[Sunshine policy]] of ([[South_Korea|South Korea]]) towards the North is in many ways similar to the German Ostpolitik of the 1970s.

According to the Basic Treaty the Federal Republic and GDR accepted each other's de facto ambassadors, termed "permanent representatives" for political reasons. The mutual recognition opened the door for both states to join the [[United Nations]], as the Federal Republic's claim to representing the entire German nation was essentially dropped by the act of recognizing its Eastern counterpart.

== List of Treaties ==

*[[Permit Agreement]] from [[December 17]], [[1963]]

The CDU/CSU persuaded the FDP to defect from its coalition with the SPD in 1982, and thus CDU leader [[Helmut Kohl]] became Chancellor of West Germany. However, he did not change West German policy towards the GDR. Such was the consensus that ''Ostpolitik'' had been vindicated that [[Bavaria]]n [[Minister President of Bavaria|Minister-President]] [[Franz Josef Strauß]], who had fiercely fought against the Basic Treaty and was Kohl's main opponent within the CDU/CSU bloc, secured the passage of a Kohl-initiated loan of 3&nbsp;billion [[Deutsche Mark|mark]]s to the GDR in 1983. In 1987, East German leader [[Erich Honecker]] became the first ever East German head of state [[Erich Honecker's 1987 visit to West Germany|to visit]] West Germany, which was generally seen as a sign that Kohl pursued ''Ostpolitik''.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.fpri.org/article/2013/03/the-fall-of-the-berlin-wall-the-power-of-individuals-and-the-unpredictability-of-history/|title=The Fall of the Berlin Wall, the Power of Individuals, and the Unpredictability of History|publisher=Foreign Policy Research Institute|language=en-US|access-date=31 January 2017}}</ref>

*[[Treaty of Moscow (1970)|Treaty of Moscow]] from [[August 12]], [[1970]]

*[[Treaty of Warsaw (1970)|Treaty of Warsaw]] from [[December 7]], [[1970]]

==Efflorescence==

*[[Four-Power Agreement]] from [[September 3]], [[1971]]

{{main|Wandel durch Handel}}

*[[Transit Agreement (1972)|Transit Agreement]] from [[December 17]], [[1971]]

*[[Basic Treaty (1972)|Basic Treaty]] from [[December 21]], [[1972]]

==Policies similar to Ostpolitik==

*[[Treaty of Prague]] from [[December 11]], [[1973]]

=== Pre-WW2 diplomacy ===

German states ([[Prussia]] and [[Saxony]] as well as unified Germany) have long faced the issues of co-existing with their eastern neighbours, whatever the differences in culture, beliefs and outlook.

[[Otto von Bismarck | Bismarck]]'s complex foreign-policy balances included the 1887 [[Reinsurance Treaty]] with the [[German Empire]]'s eastern neighbour, the [[Russian Empire]].

[[Weimar Germany]] broke out of a degree of diplomatic isolation by signing the [[Treaty of Rapallo (1922) |Treaty of Rapallo]] with [[RSFSR|Soviet Russia]] in 1922.

The [[Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact]] of 1939 defied ideological differences and established trade and geopolitical agreements between [[Nazi Germany]] and the Soviet Union.

===Vatican diplomacy===

''Ostpolitik'' is also the name given to the policies of [[Pope Paul VI]] (in office: 1963-1978) towards the Soviet Union and its [[Eastern Bloc|Eastern European satellite states]]. Trying to improve the condition of Christians in general and [[Catholic Church|Catholics]] in particular behind the Iron Curtain, he engaged in dialogue with Communist authorities at several levels, receiving Foreign Minister [[Andrei Gromyko]] and USSR head of state [[Nikolai Podgorny]] in 1966 and 1967 in the [[Vatican City|Vatican]]. The situation of the Church in [[People's Republic of Poland|Poland]], [[People's Republic of Hungary|Hungary]] and [[Socialist Republic of Romania|Romania]] improved somewhat during his pontificate.<ref>

Franzen 427.<!-- from August Franzen's ''A concise history of the Church''? --></ref>

Among the factors behind the development of ''Ostpolitik'' in the Vatican was the [[Cuban Missile Crisis|Cuban missile crisis]], which exemplified the risk of nuclear war.<ref name=":10">{{Cite book |last=Mariani |first=Paul Philip |title=China's Church Divided: Bishop Louis Jin and the Post-Mao Catholic Revival |date=2025 |publisher=[[Harvard University Press]] |isbn=978-0-674-29765-4 |___location=Cambridge, Massachusetts}}</ref>{{Reference page|page=17}} [[Foreign relations of the Holy See|Holy See diplomats]] including [[Agostino Casaroli|Cardinal Agostino Casaroli]] became convinced that the Catholic Church had been too reluctant to engage with the communist countries.<ref name=":10" />{{Reference page|page=17}} The Holy See decided that it should downplay the role of ideological conflicts in international relations and reduce the Vatican's anti-communist rhetoric.<ref name=":10" />{{Reference page|page=17}} The Vatican also sought to use this approach to make the sacraments and church public life more available in the communist countries.<ref name=":10" />{{Reference page|page=17}}

=== South Korea ===

[[South Korea]]'s 1980s policy of ''[[Nordpolitik]]'' was named in allusion to ''Ostpolitik''.

A similar concept is [[Sunshine Policy]], which is the main North Korea policies of the [[Democratic Party (South Korea, 2015)|Democratic Party of Korea]].

== List of treaties ==

These are West German treaties that have ''Ostpolitik'' as a primary or secondary policy goal:

* [[Permit Agreement]] from 17 December 1963

* [[Treaty of Moscow (1970)|Treaty of Moscow]] from 12 August 1970

* [[Treaty of Warsaw (1970)|Treaty of Warsaw]] from 7 December 1970

* [[Four Power Agreement on Berlin]] from 3 September 1971

* [[Transit Agreement (1972)|Transit Agreement]] from 17 December 1971

* [[Basic Treaty, 1972|Basic Treaty]] from 21 December 1972

* [[Treaty of Prague (1973)|Treaty of Prague]] from 11 December 1973

Later agreements in the period of Christian Democrat [[Helmut Kohl]] (from 1982 through [[German reunification]] in 1990), although dealing with similar issues and having similar goals, are not considered to be ''Ostpolitik''.

==See also==

{{Portal|Germany}}

* [[Détente]]

* [[Inner German relations]]

* [[Sunshine policy]]

* [[Territorial evolution of Germany]]

== References ==

{{reflist}}

===Bibliography===

* Clemens, Clay. ''Reluctant Realists: The CDU/CSU and West German Ostpolitik'' (1989)

* Fink, Carole/Schaefer, Bernd (eds.): ''Ostpolitik, 1969–1974: European and Global Responses'', (Cambridge University Press, 2009), {{ISBN|978-0-521-89970-3}}. [https://kb.osu.edu/bitstream/handle/1811/30220/2/Ostpolitik%205-12-06%20conference%20report.pdf Excerpt.]

* Hofmann, Arne. ''The emergence of détente in Europe: Brandt, Kennedy and the formation of Ostpolitik.'' (Routledge, 2007).

* McAdams, A. James. "The New Diplomacy of the West German Ostpolitik." in ''The Diplomats, 1939-1979'' (Princeton University Press, 2019) pp.&nbsp;537–563. [https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctv8pz9nc.24 online]

==External links==

* [http://germanhistorydocs.ghi-dc.org/sub_document.cfm?document_id=81 "Change through Rapprochement", excerpt from Egon Bahrs speech]

* [http://www.ostpolitik.net/ Ostpolitik.net, international history project at the University of Mannheim]

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