The relationship between the German Federal Government and the Laender, taking the field of nuclear energy as an example

The federal structure of the Federal Republic of Germany is one of the major and well-proven pillars of the constitutional basis of our state. The federal structure proved to be efficient both in terms of history and institutional aspects, but there have been developments in recent years which lay themselves open to criticism. Thus diverging political intentions or even lines of policy adopted by Laender governments or the Federal government have been building up a climate of controversy over certain issues, adversely affecting the relationship between the Laender and the Federal government. Such conflicts between the political parties increasingly have been shifted to the battlefield of the Bundestag (national parliament), or the Bundesrat (Federal Council). One of the items of controversy that have been causing trouble for quite a time now is the debate about the role of nuclear energy within the energy sector. (orig./UA)