One thing that you should know is that there is no actual difference between the two, aside from their names. They are called differently in different countries. The Alsatian has gotten its name because it can be found in the Alsace-Lorraine region that can be found in between France and Germany. The German Shepherd has gotten its name because the dog breed is supposedly found in Germany.
If you would look at these two dogs, you can say that they are of the same breed. There are a lot of dog lovers who have tried crossbreeding these two dog breeds with other dog breeds in order to form new dog breeds that can really be cute.