SECURITY OPTIONS FOR EUROPE

Ever since the radical and epoch-making changes world politics which t ook place between 1983 and 1991 and the no less equally radical change in the security constellation in Europe a key focus of interest has b een whether and how an appropriate response can be found to the new ne ed and opportunities on what is now an undivided continent. In the fol lowing article, Hans Arnold, who represented the Federal Republic of G ermany as an ambassador in various countries around the world before h is retirement, presents his personal view. The author - in contrast wi th the prevailing view of opinion leaders and decision-makers in Germa ny favours the traditional notion of a European power system determine d by national interests, ambitions and rivalries. Working on this basi s, he arrives at an extremely sceptical conclusion on the future effec tiveness of existing European security structures, which he feels are inextricably linked with the past situation of the Cold War. Although this position will probably encounter a great deal of strong protest i t would appear to require consideration in the international discussio n in the light of the fact that its underlying tenets still carry cons iderable weight in other countries.