More than five years after the opening of the Berlin Wall, the collapse of the GDR and the end of the Cold War, Germany has begun to cope with the political, economic, social and nationalistic challenges unification has posed to its institutions and way of life in both the western and eastern part of the once divided country. This book's nine authors, all experts in their field, analyze the way united Germany has tackled the many unforeseen problems and highlight the gradually emerging short and long-term patterns in Germany's slow adjustment to the new realities. The book provides ample and well-analyzed information to for comprehending the many challenges facing Germany and its European neighbors in the post-Cold War world.