I know it's a mixed metaphor, but that's about the basic thing. So the Germans have learned to exert their influence multilaterally, through institutions, and they're very good at it. Because there is self-restraint, nobody has to be afraid of the Germans, which would be the strongest blow to their influence and to their power. NATO is an interesting paradox because the war is over, we won the war. NATO won the war ten years ago with the fall of the Berlin wall.
Alliances die when they win.
And yet this one is still alive ten years after the fact. Well, for the old reasons. You want to be allied to the United States because the United States is a kind of security lender of the last resort. You never know what might happen, especially with Russia coming back, point number one. Germany, you're talking about.