What new dimensions did Germany's foreign policy acquire after reunification?

In 1989, the Berlin Wall collapsed. Crumbling before the popular pressures of East Germany and the ideals of democratization that were sweeping across Eastern Europe, the barrier between East and West Berlin was destroyed. The Wall served not only as a geopolitical divider, but also separated the two prominent ideologies of the day, communism and capitalism. Its ruin marked a new era in politics for Europe and specifically Germany: the chance for a new, autonomous voice to emerge from the shadows of a bipolar world, from the rubble of a divided continent. A description of German foreign policy as it evolved after reunification is ‘continuity with change’ (Arnold 1991, p. 464). The reunification of Germany in 1990 produced a continuation of West Germany’s policy, which was characterized by a penchant for political and economic power over military power, by its preference for multilateralism over the use of unilateral actions, and by its concentration on European rather than glo...