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German Identity and Foreign Policy towards Israel: Germany’s Parliamentary Discourse on Israel post-2023
Malmö University, Faculty of Culture and Society (KS), Department of Global Political Studies (GPS).
2025 (English)Independent thesis Advanced level (degree of Master (One Year)), 14 HE creditsStudent thesis
Abstract [en]

This thesis investigates how German national identity is constructed in parliamentary debates on foreign policy toward Israel following the events of October 7, 2023. It examines how these identity constructions shape what is considered legitimate or expected in foreign policy decisions. Adopting an interpretative constructivist framework, the study combines Jepperson et al.’s (1996) approach to identity and foreign policy with Laclau and Mouffe’s (1985) Discourse Theory. Through discourse analysis of two Bundestag debates from October 2023 and October 2024, the thesis finds that German self-perception as a morally rehabilitated, responsible state consistently demands a strong commitment to Israel. While the 2024 debate reflects a more diverse and contested discursive landscape, core identity constructions continue to legitimize a foreign policy that prioritizes support for Israel. Humanitarian concerns and international law are increasingly invoked as elements of national identity but remain constrained by the overarching norm of commitment to Israel. The thesis concludes that this more diverse discursive landscape potentially enables and legitimizes foreign policy decisions that simultaneously uphold general support to Israel––including weapon deliveries––while also allowing for limited constraints on the scope of support and enabling symbolic humanitarian engagement.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
2025. , p. 77
Keywords [en]
Identity, Foreign Policy, Discourse, Germany, Israel
National Category
Political Science
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:mau:diva-79098OAI: oai:DiVA.org:mau-79098DiVA, id: diva2:1992752
Educational program
KS GPS Political Science - Global Politics
Supervisors
Examiners
Available from: 2025-09-18 Created: 2025-08-28 Last updated: 2025-09-18Bibliographically approved

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Citation style
  • apa
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