ABSTRACT
The crisis in Ukraine has demonstrated that Germany continues to find balancing European Union (EU) cooperation in foreign policy with national preferences tough. The cumulative impact of Germany's foreign policy under the Christian democrats (CDU) / Social Democrats (CSU) - FDP (Free Democratic Party) government was that cooperation within the EU and NATO on foreign and security policy was less prioritized in favour of expanding Germany's geopolitical reach to promote its economic interests. Whilst Europe has remained a focus for Germany's foreign policy since the crisis in Ukraine, Berlin still maintains a keen interest in expanding its global influence to represent its economic interests. The Ukraine crisis demonstrates Germany's continued unease in deploying coercive measures in international affairs. As Angela Merkel's government declaration in the Bundestag in March 2014 demonstrated, Merkel wished to take a military response off the range of options Germany would consider.
