West germany foreign policy aims

What had the soviets developed by 1949?

The atomic bomb.

In 1950, the outbreak of the Korean War seemed to confirm the fears of the ‘free Western world’ about communist aggression.

What did the FRG remain in the early 1950s?

Remained politically impotent.

Who was the country under control of?

The Allied High Commission, and it did not enjoy real sovereignty.

What was West Germany able to do?

Be reintegrated, and become an equal and vital partner with other Western powers.

How different was this from the situation after the First World War?

Very different to 1919, when Germany was seen as an outcast, but not so different from later 1925 Locarno Pact.

What have critics argued about Adenauer?

That he abandoned the East and did not reconcile the USSR to West German rearmament.