In times of global upheaval, talking about new faces in government and other institutions from a European capital may be more relevant than in quieter times. This is especially the case for Germany and its political center Berlin, which faces relentless assaults from a new U.S. president. The way the German political, economic, and cultural elite that was brought up under the postwar “Pax Americana” feels these days is captured very well in the forthcoming issue of Der Spiegel magazine: “With his decision to blow up the Iran deal, U.S. President Trump has thrown Europe into uncertainty and anxiety … Trump has humiliated Europe to a greater degree than any U.S. president before him … To complete Europe’s humiliation, Trump’s new U.S. ambassador in Berlin, Richard Grenell, sent out a tweet this week demanding that German companies immediately begin winding down their operations in Iran. It sounded more like the words of a colonial power issuing orders than those of a diplomat in an allied country.”
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