She was surprised, says the 42-year-old, what the expression “feminist” was for a “trigger word”. What the guidelines aim for should be a matter of course in the 21st century: that all people have the same rights, freedoms and opportunities – regardless of their gender.
Feminist foreign policy is an important project for Baerbock, but also for her party itself. The Greens had already pushed it in the opposition. At the same time, it is one of Baerbock’s most difficult projects, requiring a lot of explanation.
That’s why the minister insisted on presenting it herself on Wednesday shortly before departure for the G20 foreign ministers’ meeting in New Delhi.
Headwind comes from conservative voices in particular – not only from CDU politicians. The whole thing works “like a label that a women-friendly politician wants to attach to her ministry,” writes the “Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung”. “Baerbock orders a ‘feminist reflex’,” even the liberal “Spiegel” scoffs. Feminism polarizes.
Some of Baerbock’s unconditional will to make feminism “mainstream” in the Foreign Office is dissatisfying even in his own house. Some men fear that they will not be promoted because their female colleagues are given preference. However, the majority of employees know that initiatives like Baerbock’s are needed to break up the conservative structures that have been firmly established in the Federal Foreign Office for years.
Foreign Office still a long way from equality
But what is feminist foreign policy anyway? What are the new guidelines about?
Firstly, there is the will to promote equality in the house. For years, the office was among the lowest in terms of the proportion of women in managerial positions among all ministries. Although there are signs of change, it is still a long way from equality.
>> Read here: Guest commentary by Svenja Schulze and Catherine Russell: Why investing in gender equality pays off
Secondly, women’s interests should be given greater consideration in foreign policy. It is explicitly not about redeploying the funds of other departments. On the contrary: Both Development Minister Svenja Schulze (SPD) and Baerbock emphasize in their strategies that it is a matter of aligning the respective funds of their ministries in such a way that they take feminist criteria more into account.
Women should be given more decision-making power, for example in peace processes. Because, according to Baerbock in the Weltsaal, peace treaties are more stable when women write them down.
Baerbock already often meets with female leaders on her travels, and she begins almost all of her speeches with personal stories about women or children. It is an attempt to make politics more tangible and women more visible in a world in which the male perspective dominates in almost all areas of life.
Baerbock differentiates itself from its predecessors
An “ambassador for feminist foreign policy” is to monitor compliance with the guidelines and their further development. Baerbock wants to firmly anchor feminist foreign policy and climate policy as cross-cutting issues in the Federal Foreign Office. If she succeeds, this change could be one that will outlast her time as minister.
With her feminist foreign policy, Baerbock also has to assert herself against resistance in her own house.
(Photo: dpa)
Baerbock stands out from her predecessors in office in many ways. Instead of hiding behind complicated boxed sentences or diplomatic phrases, she often speaks freely and does not shy away from speaking English – not without risk for the non-native speaker. At times she offends with her direct manner and her penchant for colloquial language, especially when she speaks English.
In the German population, however, it is well received. For months she was the most popular politician in Germany. In February, she slipped somewhat in the voters’ favour, but still occupies fourth place in the political barometer.
>> Read here: “Impunity prevents justice”: Baerbock calls for further investigation into Russian war crimes
Opinions differ in the Foreign Office as far as their performance to date is concerned. After the initial euphoria, with Baerbock finally having someone at the top again after her predecessor Heiko Maas (SPD), who gives the office political weight, there is also skepticism at times. Less show, more results – that’s what some in office want. And yet: “Baerbock has set a lot in motion,” it says appreciatively.
She is popular with her European colleagues, and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken calls her a “friend”. It was also thanks to her that 141 of the 193 UN member states passed a resolution calling for an immediate Russian troop withdrawal at the UN General Assembly last week. In numerous telephone calls and meetings, for example on the fringes of the Munich Security Conference, Baerbock had personally campaigned for the states to vote.
It must also be measured against climate policy
In the end, it will have to be judged by what becomes of its most important projects, including climate policy. With the beginning of the new federal government, the Federal Foreign Office took over the control and coordination of international climate policy – including the international climate negotiations.
Since then, departments have been reorganized in terms of content, employees hired, and great importance has been attached to coordination with other departments. At the climate conference in November in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, the four key ministries involved in climate protection – in addition to the Federal Foreign Office, the Ministry for Economic Affairs, the Environment and Development Aid – presented themselves as “Team Germany”.
>> Read here: Team Germany: How the Foreign Minister is trying to break new ground in climate policy
There is also a focus on the 226 foreign representations. To date, 37 so-called climate focus representations have been created, including in the countries particularly affected by the climate crisis. The aim is for all messages to gradually focus on climate issues.
According to observers, things are not yet running smoothly. But the team in the Foreign Office, now with almost 70 employees, is “very active” and on the right track. The first draft of the long-awaited climate foreign policy strategy is already expected for the end of March. The Federal Cabinet is to adopt the strategy in the first half of the year.
But the schedule could falter, just like the National Security Strategy and the China Strategy. For all topics, Baerbock is dependent on cooperation with the Chancellery. But Baerbock and Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) do not always agree, which delays the final vote on the papers.
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