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Author

Volker Stanzel

Former Under Secretary for Political Affairs, German Foreign Office

Volker Stanzel served as the German Foreign Office’s Political Director from 2007-09.

From 2009 to 2013, Mr. Stanzel served as the ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany to Japan. And from 2004-07, he was German ambassador to the People’s Republic of China.

Since retiring from the Foreign Service in October 2013, he has taught political science at Claremont McKenna College in California. He is also a member of the European Council on Foreign Relations and a senior policy fellow for China in international affairs at the Mercator Institute for China Studies in Berlin.

Mr. Stanzel also serves on the advisory board of China programs for the Robert Bosch Stiftung. He was a member of the SPD from 1966 to 2013. He was awarded the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany first class.

Articles by Volker Stanzel

Japan & Trump: Now What?

Despite Trump in the White House, Japan aims to get the TPP anyway and keep U.S. troops in the country too. Is that realistic?

November 17, 2016

U.S. History a Warning on EU-Turkey Refugee Deal

This time, it may be Europe – not the United States – that faces the ghosts of the "MS St. Louis."

May 3, 2016

Germany’s Gauck in China: Human Rights for Home Consumption

How the Chinese leadership manages to cottonball sensitive state visits.

March 24, 2016

Germany and Japan: A Comeback Story

A strategic reflection 70 years after the end of WWII.

March 7, 2015

The Global American Dream

The U.S. is still the world’s gold standard.

January 10, 2015

When America Simply Shrugs

Despite a plethora of quite fixable problems, Americans seem increasingly inclined just to look the other way.

January 9, 2015

Trade as a Confidence-Building Measure in East Asia

The future of East Asia depends upon the ability of its nations to jump over the shadows of the past.

November 17, 2014