The COVID-19 Pandemic as an Incubator of Great Power Rivalries

Abstract

A pandemic-affected global economy can only recover if COVID-19 is defeated worldwide, which would require global cooperation. However, this crisis has exacerbated existing rivalries, particularly between the US and China. During US President Joe Biden's term of office, an even tougher geoeconomic approach to China is expected. As a result of the intensified showdown between the two economic giants, the European economy will suffer collateral damage. Above all, Germany's economy and politics will find themselves even more entangled in the predicaments of Chinese and US world-power ambitions. German companies operating internationally have been particularly caught in the crosshairs of major powers' geoeconomic strategies. After all, Germany is one of the most internationally intertwined and thus most vulnerable economies in the world. This is particularly true when it comes to technological issues of the future. Germany and Europe must show their colors in the future or strive for more European "sovereignty”. © 2022 selection and editorial matter, Donald E. Abelson and Stephen Brooks;individual chapters, the contributors.