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Merkel and Kramp-Karrenbauer in Seedorf
Photo: FRIEDEMANN VOGEL / EPA
Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer justified the almost 20 years of the Bundeswehr's deployment in Afghanistan to soldiers.
At the end of this mission, however, an "open and honest" assessment must also be made, said the defense minister in an appeal for participants in the evacuation mission from Kabul.
Chancellor Angela Merkel also took part in the event in the paratrooper barracks in Seedorf in Lower Saxony.
The Bundeswehr soldiers had "achieved incredible things" and brought more than 5300 people to safety at risk of death, said Kramp-Karrenbauer.
As a lesson from the Afghanistan mission, she demanded better equipping the Bundeswehr and making Europe more capable of acting in the military field.
The eleven-day operation in August over Kabul Airport was the largest evacuation mission in the history of the Bundeswehr to date.
Around 600 emergency services were involved, including federal police officers and diplomats.
At the return roll call in Seedorf, some members of the Bundeswehr were awarded the medal on behalf of all those involved.
»Learn from the mission and its end«
"You put yourself in danger and saved many lives," said Kramp-Karrenbauer about the operation at Kabul airport after the Taliban came to power.
Germany is "deeply indebted to those involved."
Now it is also about "learning from the Afghanistan mission and its end," said Kramp-Karrenbauer.
"Realistic objectives" for future assignments are also necessary.
The Defense Minister also emphasized that the evacuation operation would not have been possible without the US military capabilities such as armed drones or aerial refueling.
“Anyone who wants us to be able to do more ourselves in the future has to dig deep into our pockets.” The aim must be to “make the Bundeswehr more operational and fitter”.
as / AFP / dpa