Is Germany’s Foreign Minister Having a Chrystia Freeland Moment?

Last month, Germany’s foreign minister, Sigmar Gabriel, gave a big speech in Berlin on how to change foreign policy in the age of Donald Trump.

Canadians might ask themselves what took Germany so long. After all, Canada’s Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland gave a similar type of speech in June 2017, more than six months ago.

Freeland argued that Canada had to take on more responsibility for upholding “a global order based on rules” that had greatly benefited Canadians. This order had “at its heart the core notions of territorial integrity, human rights, democracy, respect for the rule of law and an aspiration to free and friendly trade.”