Contemporary Germany provides positive, sensible leadership for Europe and beyond.

Over the past months, Chancellor Friedrich Merz has enjoyed a series of rhetorical and diplomatic successes that deserve more attention and praise than they have so far received. On Jan. 22, he delivered an important and insightful policy address at a meeting of international leaders in Davos, Switzerland.

Merz emphasized that the international system of approximately the past three decades, since the collapse of the Soviet Union and the Soviet satellite bloc, with the conclusion of the Cold War, has ended. The relatively stable successor system, led by the United States, where international law was relatively influential, has now also come to an end, in part because of the direct military invasion of Ukraine by Russia in 2022 and resulting long, bloody and so far indecisive war.

China, with impressive “strategic foresight,” has now become a great power, and more generally we are entering an era of great power politics.

Merz noted that “strength and force” have emerged as much more important than before, but do not have to dominate or even define future international relations. In his words, “We do not have to accept this new reality as fate.”

He aptly underscored the role of responsible, far-sighted U.S. leadership in the creation of NATO in the aftermath of World War II. He also stressed the European Union, which was also initially created through European and U.S. initiative to encourage economic development and security, primarily in this case by integrating West Germany with the rest of Western Europe.

Also skillfully, he complimented fresh attention devoted to Greenland and the vital importance of security for the “High North,” meaning the Arctic region.

This rhetorical tour de force caps extensive diplomatic activity over the past year. On July 17, the Kensington Treaty, was signed by Merz and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in London. The new treaty deepens existing cooperation in defense, migration, trade and other matters. Merz also called for greatly increased cooperation between the two nations and France.

This effort complements the newly announced Anglo-French agreement to coordinate nuclear weapons strategy. Historically, Britain has been closely aligned with the United States on nuclear matters.

France, too, has historically distinguished itself by pursuing policies independent of Washington on nuclear weapons and other strategic matters. Tensions peaked during the Kennedy administration, when an assertive American president clashed with the imperious French leader Charles de Gaulle.

More recent years have brought a low-key reconciliation across the Atlantic. In 2009, France rejoined NATO after dramatically departing the organization — and forcing NATO headquarters out of Paris — in 1966.

Merz also scored a diplomatic success with his visit to President Donald Trump at the White House on June 5. In contrast to a disastrous meeting earlier between President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine and Trump, the session with Merz was calm, friendly and productive.

This is a result of the interpersonal skill, personal discipline and human insight of Germany’s head of government.

In concrete terms, Germany demonstrates sustained leadership of Europe and the larger Atlantic area alliance in forging a path to greater defense spending and greater support of Ukraine in its continuing brutal war with Russia.

Germany’s defense spending is projected to rise from 95 billion euros in fiscal 2025 to 162 billion euros in fiscal 2029, tangible funds used for hard realities.

Arthur I. Cyr (acyr@carthage.edu) is author of “After the Cold War – American Foreign Policy, Europe and Asia” (NYU Press and Palgrave/Macmillan).