According to the study, the German party-aligned foundations
profit particularly from their special status which enables them to
appear ostensibly as independent, non-government organizations.
Actually they are linked, by virtue of their closeness to the
political parties, to parliamentary and, if need be, government
policies. Furthermore, the foundations, which finance their
activities from the budgets of a variety of Berlin's ministries,
are overseen by the Foreign Office, which reviews
,,all projects (...) including embassies with regard to
potential foreign policy considerations."
Interference in internal affairs
The ostensible independence of the party-aligned foundations
has enabled them for decades to interfere in the internal affairs
of the host countries, in which it appears not advisable for
Berlin's official foreign policy to do so. According to the author
of the study, the foundations are able particularly
,,to cooperate with political forces which have the political
potential to be important for German foreign policy, but with whom
official contacts are not advisable for diplomatic reasons."
Instruments of the Foreign Office
The study finds, as stated by the author, that the
foundations cooperate closely with the German diplomatic
representatives in their respective host countries, sometimes under
the direct mandate of the German government.
,,For the implementation of measures of a political
nature,"a memorandum of the Foreign Office stated as early as
in February of 1963, the party-aligned foundations should be
,,called on so that the Federal Government does not appear as a
direct source of funds."According to the study,
,,the foundations went wherever the German governments wanted
them to be - as long as they were admitted, which they usually were
because they were able to make lucrative and non-politically
appearing offers."
,,Flow of information back"
The German foundations, which direct their activities
especially at influential persons, as potential facilitators, also
participate in sounding out their host countries for German
authorities. According to the study, they have,
,,due to their long term presence in the 'gray zones' of
politics in the project countries, information (...) which would
not be available in official diplomatic relations."The
,,flow of information back"to Germany is said to be
,,little formalized"and occurs in exchanges with the
embassies, the political parties and the foreign office.
Occasionally these conferred on the foundations the function as
,,political early warning systems", which
,,opened our eyes to developments in the world so that we could
prepare for them in time."
Subordination is
,,recommended"
The author of the study counts on an increasing significance
of the
,,role of the foundations in German foreign policy"and
recommends that the host countries subordinate themselves to German
influence: It
,,would be recommendable, even for those states which sometimes
consider themselves, for various reasons, not as subjects for
cooperation, but as objects to be influenced, to recognize the long
term foreign policy advantages which can be gained by cooperation
with the foundations and other NGOs."
See also earlier article Threats
See also earlier article Threats
