Will there be war?

Hostile troops massing on the border of a Central European democracy, fears of staged provocations, risk of a wider conflict that could spiral out of control, urgent diplomatic negotiations that fail to soften a would be aggressor's demands. No, it's not 1938, it's 2022, but Russia's threats against Ukraine and its demands for new security and arrangements in Europe sound all too familiar.

Of course, the huge difference today is that Germany is not only firmly anchored in the West but is a cornerstone of the European Union. Nonetheless, today's Germany is a center stage in the Ukraine crisis.
What will Germany do? Is the new coalition government of one mind when it comes to balancing the country’s energy dependence on Russia with its obligations to NATO? Are President Putin’s demands for a revamped European security order reasonable, at least from Moscow’s perspective?

The Ukraine crisis is far from over; however it ends, the consequences will be profound. Constanze Stelzenmüller—an expert on Germany, geopolitics and trans-Atlantic relations who is based at the Brookings Institution in Washington—is deeply knowledgeable about all aspects of the crisis. Listen as she shares her views on what is at stake.