Political discourse and regulatory challenges of threats to supply chains in the wake of the Russian attack on Ukraine

The threat to global supply chains in the context of conflicts and crises has become a central topic of political discussion in recent years and poses a particular challenge in terms of handling and possible regulation. Our study investigates the impact of Russia’s attack on Ukraine on Germany's political discourse regarding supply chain security. Using the Sociology of Knowledge Approach to Discourse (SKAD), we analyse the discursive construction of key terms like threat and resilience against the backdrop of what speakers portray as crisis or normality of global trade relations. Risk events in general are said to disrupt established norms by portraying disasters as man-made, leading to transformations in discourse and power dynamics. The war is clearly seen as such a risk event for German supply chains, reopening discursive space for transforming collective understandings about responsibility and appropriate action patterns. Our empirical focus is on parliamentary debates in the Bundestag from the annexation of Crimea in 2014 to the present. These debates play a crucial role in shaping national discourse due to their representative function, symbolic importance, and influence on legislative outcomes. We examine how party affiliations and coalition politics shape discourse positions using Grounded Theory coding techniques. The study posits what made such discourses unique, in comparison to other disruptive events such as COVID-19, is the emphasis on geopolitics and cybersecurity. At the same time, the limits of national (as well as regional) governmental agency and responsibility are very much disputed. By examining these dynamics, this study aims to contribute to a deeper understanding of how geopolitical crises can reshape national discourses on supply chain security. Furthermore, it seeks to illuminate the shifting power dynamics and policy adjustments necessary for resilient supply chains in the face of global uncertainties.