This article was originally published in Blog der Republik on October 29, 2026. EIR has been given permission to republish it.
Oct. 29—The world is currently facing a profound crisis of the international order, security, and global governance. Many of the norms, institutions, and legal foundations established after 1945 under the leadership of the United States to prevent another world war—one rooted in unregulated economic competition and crises that cannot be contained—are increasingly under pressure.
The United Nations Charter, the arms-control system, the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), the prohibition on the use of force under international law, and even the authority of the UN Security Council and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) are now on the brink of collapse. This erosion is being driven not only by challengers to the international order but, paradoxically, also by the very countries that once built it.
This development is particularly evident in the Middle East. The U.S. wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, NATO’s intervention in Libya, the war in Syria, and the destruction of Gaza—all of which have resulted in the breakdown of state structures—are connected to the current military confrontations involving the United States, Israel, and Iran, as well as the crises surrounding the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
These instabilities and conflicts threaten not only regional stability but also have negative global consequences for international trade and the energy security of countries outside the region.
At the same time, Europe faces seven challenges:
- The war in Ukraine.
- An ongoing energy crisis.
- Economic stagnation.
- New waves of migration.
- Growing domestic political polarization.
- Rising extremism; and
- Defense spending at historically high levels.
Meanwhile, transatlantic relations are undergoing profound changes. Differences between Washington and several European allies, tensions within NATO, and serious political and economic disagreements between the United States and Canada demonstrate that the security order established in Europe after 1945 is being fundamentally reshaped.
The Trump administration’s efforts to realign relations with Russia, its focus on controlling global energy resources, its intensified competition with China, and its ambitions regarding Canada and Greenland—all within the framework of the December 2025 National Security Strategy and Trump’s version of the Monroe Doctrine—illustrate a fundamental shift in American strategy, particularly in its relationship with Europe. Europe’s “child” is breaking away from its parent.
The United States and Russia together possess an estimated nearly 90 percent of the world’s nuclear weapons. A strategic rapprochement between Washington and Moscow would have far-reaching implications for their posture toward China, in both nuclear and non-nuclear domains.
The U.S. government is relying on energy resources from an era that predates the profound structural transformation now underway. It claims Venezuela’s oil resources as its own, and similar statements have been made about Iran’s energy resources. Washington is seeking greater influence over the future of the Strait of Hormuz. If successful, the United States would gain considerable influence over the world’s central energy artery—a route that will remain important as long as transportation continues to depend on combustion-based systems.
All these developments point to the need for a new world order—one that must be negotiated through peace diplomacy.
The Role and Capabilities of the Germany I Knew
My personal experience as ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran to Germany from 1990 to 1997 convinced me that Germany possesses far greater diplomatic capabilities than it currently employs. At that time, I witnessed firsthand a foreign policy whose objective was not to intensify conflicts but to ease them. Dialogue, confidence-building, and pragmatic diplomacy formed its core.
I discussed this experience in detail, drawing on diplomatic documents and my own firsthand observations, in my book Iran-Europe Relations: Challenges and Opportunities. Here, I will mention only a few examples.
German Foreign Minister Hans-Dietrich Genscher, with the full support of Chancellor Helmut Kohl, initiated strategic talks with then-Iranian President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani. The objective was to establish a system of “collective security and cooperation among the eight littoral states of the Persian Gulf”. Tehran explicitly welcomed the initiative. Ultimately, however, it failed because of opposition from the United States.
This concept could serve as the foundation for a stable regional security architecture in the Persian Gulf. In my book A New Structure for Security, Peace, and Cooperation in the Persian Gulf, I developed a comprehensive roadmap toward this goal. It includes concrete mechanisms for confidence-building, dialogue, arms control, non-interference, and collective security among all eight littoral states.
The fundamental principle is this: Lasting security in the Persian Gulf cannot be achieved through military dominance or external alliances, but only through an inclusive regional security order.
At the time, German Chancellor Helmut Kohl and President Rafsanjani agreed to establish four permanent bilateral working groups addressing nuclear issues and weapons of mass destruction, terrorism, human rights, and the Middle East peace process. The objective was to address disputes through sustained, institutionalized dialogue and prevent them from escalating into sanctions or military confrontations.
I further developed this concept in my book Iran and the United States: An Insider’s View on the Failed Past and the Road to Peace. In it, I outline a comprehensive roadmap for resolving precisely these four sets of issues as part of a long-term rapprochement between the United States and Iran. The aim is to overcome nearly five decades of hostility between the two countries.
Germany and Europe could play a constructive role in overcoming this hostility, which has destabilized the entire Middle East and, in turn, undermined Europe’s own security.
Returning to Constructive Diplomacy
Today, the world needs a form of diplomacy based not on geopolitical confrontation but on shared interests, collective security, and economic cooperation. Given its diplomatic tradition, economic strength, and special relationships with the United States, Israel, and numerous Middle Eastern countries, Germany is uniquely positioned to once again play an active and constructive role.
Germany could make decisive contributions in four particular areas:
First, promote the establishment of a comprehensive security and cooperation architecture in the Persian Gulf, including a Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone (NWFZ) and a Zone Free of Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMDFZ). This should include reviving the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding as a basis for reopening the Strait of Hormuz, ending the maritime confrontation, and negotiating a lasting security order for the Persian Gulf.[11]
Second, support a comprehensive process of rapprochement between the United States and Iran that could overcome nearly five decades of mutual hostility.
Third, promote a lasting Israeli-Palestinian peace based on relevant United Nations resolutions and a negotiated two-state solution.
Fourth, foster new strategic energy partnerships linking the Persian Gulf, the Caucasus, Russia, and Europe to strengthen long-term energy security and economic interdependence.
Europe Itself Offers the Most Convincing Historical Example
After centuries of devastating wars, Germany, France, and their European partners succeeded in gradually transforming rivalry into cooperation, economic integration, and lasting peace through the establishment of the European Union. A similar effort was undertaken through the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), but its achievements now lie in ruins.
This historical experience has significance far beyond Europe. The eight littoral states of the Persian Gulf could also draw inspiration from this model and establish a regional security and cooperation order based on dialogue, mutual trust, shared responsibility, and economic interdependence. Lasting stability does not emerge from military superiority. It requires institutions that build trust, advance shared interests, and enable conflicts to be resolved peacefully.
Conclusion
The most important lesson of the 1990s is that lasting peace can be achieved by building robust institutions for cooperation. Germany has demonstrated in the past that it can build bridges between deeply divided parties and develop innovative diplomatic solutions. At a time when the international order is undergoing profound transformation and regional conflicts are having increasingly global consequences, Germany could once again play an active and constructive role in shaping a more stable international order. A return to this tradition would serve not only the interests of Germany and Europe but also make an important contribution to peace, security, and sustainable development in the Middle East and beyond.
