Alan Maricic examines Yugoslavia's relations with the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) and the German Democratic Republic (GDR) between 1955 and 1968. This period was marked by the FRG's Hallstein Doctrine, a set of Measures placed to prevent international recognition of the GDR. One such Measure, which stipulated that the FRG would break off diplomatic relations with any country which recognized the GDR, was enforced in 1957 with Yugoslavia. Maricic argues that Yugoslavia's decision, driven by its desire for rapprochement with the Eastern Bloc, was a miscalculation, making its already uneasy position in a divided Europe even more precarious.

Alan Maricic is a Cold War historian focused on Yugoslavia's foreign policy and cultural relations with the Global South. He received his PhD from the University of Waterloo, where he is also a sessional instructor.