Cautious Reconciliation: The Change in Societal-Military Relations in Germany and Japan Since the End of the Cold War

Abstract

The ten years since the end of the Cold War have shown that 1990 was a turning point in societal-military relationships within the countries of Germany and Japan. In this decade, the relationship between the armed forces and society changed. These countries have broken out of their Cold War molds of indifference and distance, and have found common ground. No longer occupying separate corners, the new international focus of Germany and Japan's defense policies made possible by the end of the Cold War is breathing new life into societal-military relationships, which is critical for a full normalization of these two countries.