When Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer arrives at the Bundestag's Defense Committee this Wednesday, the tension is high and rare. Two days have passed since the Secretary of Defense had called for an internationally monitored protection zone in northern Syria without proper coordination in the Federal Government.
If such a zone came about, the minister left no doubt that the Bundeswehr would join a robust EU protection force and its more than dangerous mission.
The minister had no answers to many questions in her luggage. For about 70 minutes she outlined to the members of the Bundestag just how she wanted to discuss her "impetus" in the coming days with the EU partners on the sidelines of a NATO meeting in Brussels.
After all, according to her spokesman, France, Britain and the US are ready to "talk" with the German minister in Brussels about her ideas. At the same time, however, the US Ambassador to NATO already made it clear that the US Army would not participate in securing the protection zone.
After the committee meeting, the deputy voiced his concern that Kramp-Karrenbauer does not even have initial plans or scenarios in his pocket for a deployment of their soldiers.
Instead of talking about her specialty or military details, she talked a lot about diplomacy. So you need for the protection zone, a UN mandate, which can not come about without the consent of Russia. First of all, they want to be united, especially between Berlin, Paris, London and Washington. Then you could talk to Turkey and Russia.
Robust combat troops, air support for emergencies
Apparently, the minister and the few confidants, with whom she hatched her first political surprise in the new office in recent days, hovering before a kind of UN Blue Helmets mission.
Their task, according to the Minister, should be, as in Mali in sectors secured by various countries, the separation of the parties to the conflict, the monitoring of a ceasefire and the preparation of situation reports. The minister did not want to talk about figures, but confirmed that robust combat troops and air support for emergencies were in demand.
Kramp-Karrenbauer's political director Detlef Wächter had to ask similar questions in the parallel Foreign Affairs Committee. With a red head, the trained diplomat tried to derive meaningful answers from his speech, committee members report. That was not a convincing idea. Wächter either could not answer the specific questions or he raised further questions with his answers.
Not even the area for a protection zone seems set yet. Thus, Wächter outlined an area that is far larger than the border strip that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Russian colleague Vladimir Putin had agreed on the night before. On the question of a deputy, whether the protection zone also Rakka, the former capital of the "Islamic state" may include about one hundred kilometers south of the border, said guard: Check it. Some MPs were angry because of the nebulous idea:
- "The realities on the ground have changed at least since the agreement between Putin and Erdogan," said the foreign policy spokesman for the FDP, Bijan Djir-Sarai.
- Kramp-Karrenbauer's proposal has nothing to do with substance, scolded Christoph Matschie (SPD). The minister had only one headline, but not the hint of a plan for an international protection zone.
The clashes reflect the severity of the irritations after Kramp-Karrenbauer's offensive, including within the governing coalition.
In the Foreign Office, for example, it is annoying that the new member of the ministerial team has jumped on the highly complex issue of Syria completely unspoken. As a result, State Secretary Niels Annen blubbered when asked about the initiative's support: "You're welcome to check details when you finally get to know them.
Hardly prepared for the NATO meeting
How Kramp-Karrenbauer wants to go to talks with her ministerial colleagues from the NATO states in Brussels on Thursday is currently completely unclear. Since Monday, the military department has been completely surprised by the Minister's public offensive. Even the Inspector General as the most important military advisor was evidently not privy to.
Now, several departments are rushing to develop at least rough scenarios and safety assessments for a mission that would lead the Bundeswehr into one of the most dangerous areas.
Experienced generals are shocked by the actions of the Minister. Instead of a plan is of an "unpolished blank" the speech, the initiative of the Minister seemed a bit like a "blind flight to the world stage".
Strategists with a wealth of experience also noted that the minister was risking Germany's reputation. "If you come up with such an idea first, you have to lead in the end such a mission also militarily," said an officer, "otherwise nobody will take you seriously for a long time."
Ugur Can / DHA / AP
The Minister herself did not want to hear about such considerations on Wednesday.
"It was important to me that the debate get going at all," she said during a troop visit to Erfurt. Instead of further discussions about their precipitous maneuver, we now need joint efforts for an agreement at the UN.
Instead, a spokesperson for Chancellor Merkel emphasized several times in Berlin, within the Federal Government, the opinion forming on the ideas of the Minister is not yet completed.
Also from Moscow came no good news for the CDU boss. At first, the Kremlin had announced that it was open to new ideas from Europe. On Wednesday, however, Russian media reported that the Moscow government sees no need for an internationally controlled protection zone after the agreement with Turkey.
Thus, the "political go" that Kramp-Karrenbauer hoped for from the United Nations seems to have moved into a distant future.
