Germany Deserves a New Deal on Nuclear Energy

“Now that Donald Trump is US President again, the strong, reliable guy in the playground has suddenly become unpredictable,” the German magazine Der Spiegel explained in its children’s section last week. Much of political Germany feels this way: almost as disillusioned with the US as it is with Russia, keen to reduce dependency on both. But while notable efforts to boost Germany’s defense capabilities are underway, there are no comparable plans to reduce energy vulnerability, leaving Germany as reliant on others as ever.

Germany imports nearly 70% of its energy. On natural gas, the figure goes up to 95%. That’s a risky situation for the third-largest economy in the world. And everybody knows it, putting Berlin in a poor bargaining position, whether when striking new LNG deals with a White House that puts America first or returning to Russian gas as many German industry captains demand. Both routes are expensive; neither would lead to more geopolitical and economic independence.