Overview
The partnership between Britain and Germany is one of the pivotal relationships in the new Europe. It is buoyed by a vibrant network of links in trade, investment, industry and finance, and by a dialogue of growing intensity over common challenges in social policy, economic restructuring, and foreign and security policy. Against this background, the Forum, set up in 1995, acts as a focal point for practical and independent-minded people who want to encourage co-operation between the two countries. The Forum, a registered charity without party political affiliation, works closely with a range of corporate, governmental and policy organisations. Political relations between the two countries have improved greatly since German reunification in 1990 and are now buttressed by a wider and much more systematic exchange of views and experience. The Forum contributes to these linkages with factual information, lively debate and rational insights on the two countries and the ties between them. Britain and Germany exert great influence on the development of the European Union. They have much in common on how to adapt the EU's institutional structure to cope with the challenge of enlargement. Both nations share a desire to combine social justice and inclusiveness with an environment where flair and enterprise can generate the wealth necessary for future success. The two nations' contrasting histories, and the differences in their cultures, mean they have much to learn from each other. Britain's geographical and cultural position on the EU's western wing, and its preoccupation with both European and transatlantic links, contrast with Germany's focus on central Europe and its economic interests to the east. None the less, both nations have been staunch supporters of NATO and a collective approach to European security policy. Differing policies over the war in Iraq have left their mark. However, it is striking that London and Berlin have managed to overcome differences of emphasis over ties with the US in a way that testifies to the strength and the maturity of the relationship. In similar fashion, Britain's non-participation in economic and monetary union has not prevented close ties in many fields of economics and business, including deregulation, energy issues, science and technology and capital markets. This marks an alliance of interests that is highly beneficial for the overall development of Europe.
