The Second Senate of the Bundesverfassungsgericht (Federal Constitutional Court) heard oral arguments on June 19, 2001, in the “NATO Strategic Concept” case. The parliamentary fraction of the Party of Democratic Socialism (PDS) in the Bundestag (Federal Parliament) brought the case to the Federal Constitutional Court as an Organstreitverfahren (dispute between federal organs), which permits one federal organ (in this case, the Federal Parliament as represented by one of its party fractions) to challenge the constitutionality of an action taken by another federal organ (in this case, the Bundesregierung [Federal Government - executive branch]). The Federal Government consists of a parliamentary coalition between the Social Democratic Party (SPD) headed by Chancellor Gerhard Schröder, and the Alliance 90/the Greens (Greens), whose most prominent figure in the Federal Government is Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer.

In two recent decisions, the German Federal Constitutional Court [Bundesverfassungsgericht - FCC] has clarified important issues of the interaction of national and European law. While both decisions deal with the obligation of German courts to refer questions of European law to the ECJ, one of them particularly addresses the crucial question whether national laws implementing European directives can be challenged before the FCC.

The series of labour market reforms recently introduced across Europe may have struck many observers in North America, as it did critics on the continent, as incongruous. The reforms, whose main purpose is to extend worker protection, come at a time when economic growth on the continent is slowing markedly. From the perspective of German, French, Spanish and European legislators, however, the reforms are sensible and timely, conducive to international competitiveness. How can these diametrically opposed assessments about such a fundamental matter be explained?