As of: March 1, 2024, 5:51 p.m
By: Tadhg Nagel
Comments
Press
Split
Boris Pistorius is trying to make the Bundeswehr combat-ready – a difficult task.
But he enjoys the support of the population.
Berlin – The conflict triggered by the Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022 has permanently changed the European security landscape.
In addition, there are now concerns about the security policy implications of a possible second term in office for Donald Trump in the USA.
Politicians quickly responded to the new situation.
But have the attitudes of Germany’s citizens also changed?
Boris Pistorius has the support of the population.
© IMAGO/ALEX HALADA
Just three days after the start of the war in Ukraine, Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced a “turning point” for German foreign and security policy in a special session of the German Bundestag on February 27, 2022.
After all, the world is “no longer the same” as before.
Germany must therefore invest more in security and ensure its own defense capability, which is “a major national effort”.
The goal is “a powerful, ultra-modern, progressive Bundeswehr that reliably protects us.”
Scholz announced that he would set up a special fund of “one-off 100 million euros” for the Bundeswehr, which would be used for “necessary investments and armaments projects”.
The turning point initially got off to a slow start - will the defense department remain a disaster area?
However, the implementation of this project got off to a rather slow start.
The announced special fund was anchored in the German Basic Law in June 2022;
According to the Chancellor's assessment, this was “the most far-reaching turnaround in German security policy since the Bundeswehr was founded in 1955.”
Christine Lambrecht (SPD), the defense minister at the time, was slow to implement this change.
When she left office in January 2023, the Bundeswehr was still in a desolate state: too few personnel, too little material and defective equipment.
As a result, the criticism of Lambrecht continued until, after countless scandals, she finally gave up.
Her successor in office, Boris Pistorius (SPD), vowed when he took office that he would bring a breath of fresh air - which was initially viewed with suspicion.
The SPD politician, who was previously Lower Saxony's interior and sports minister and mayor of Osnabrück, seemed just as unsuitable for the office as many of his predecessors.
After all, the defense department was considered a disaster area for ministers for decades, and many a career was ruined by the office.
But the new defense minister was convincing and became the most popular politician in Germany almost overnight.
He is now even being considered as Scholz's successor, even if he denies sharing such considerations.
Boris Pistorius faces a Herculean task - and wants up to 3.5 percent of GDP for defense
And yet it is a huge task that Pistorius now faces.
Recently, only half of the military transport aircraft, Tornados and Eurofighter aircraft were operational.
All six submarines were out of action.
And soldiers complain about a lack of weapons and ammunition, even thermal underwear for the extreme winter weather.
Pistorius therefore does not want to be satisfied with a one-off increase in the defense budget of 100 billion euros - even if Germany will meet NATO's two percent target for the first time since 1992.
At the Munich Security Conference he announced that if necessary they would spend “3 percent or perhaps even 3.5 percent” of GDP.
My news
“Big worries” in the Red Sea: Frigate “Hessen” is probably suffering from a lack of ammunition
Expert discovers two pithy statements in Putin's speech that hardly anyone noticed
1 hour ago
Mourning for Navalny at the open coffin - First figures on arrests around the memorial service read
New asylum rule: In future, dental treatment will only be possible after three years - exception for Ukrainians
2 hours ago
Alleged Bundeswehr recording: Medvedev fumes and demands “death of German fascists” read
Germany sends another warship to the Red Sea – frigate “Hamburg” with special armament
But the number of soldiers has also fallen to a historic low of 180,000.
About 20,000 new recruits are needed just to replace the soldiers who leave each year - not to mention expanding the size of the force.
Politicians are desperately struggling to find solutions: from a reintroduction of conscription, which was abolished in 2011, to an accelerated application for citizenship for those who agree to serve, all options, no matter how unlikely, are being considered.
But is there any public support for something like this?
The Germans support the Bundeswehr - 57 percent are in favor of financial strengthening
According to surveys by the Bundeswehr Center for Military History and Social Sciences, the Bundeswehr now enjoys a high reputation among the population.
The positive attitude towards the armed forces reached a historic high in 2023.
82 percent of those surveyed recently spoke positively about the Bundeswehr - but according to the data, this value has never been below 75 percent in the past 20 years.
In addition, 57 percent of those surveyed are in favor of financially strengthening the Bundeswehr.
At least 39 percent of those surveyed, two percentage points less than last year, would be willing to defend Germany with weapons.
Germany's fundamental membership of NATO was also supported by 70 percent of those surveyed - only three percentage points less than in 2022. The perceived threat to the population's sense of security has decreased slightly.
In 2022, almost half of those surveyed felt personally threatened by war (45 percent);
In 2023, this value fell to a third (34 percent).
However, concern about immediate tensions between the West and Russia remains high at 55 percent.
Defense budget could come at the expense of social welfare - Germans want more diplomacy
So it seems as if a large part of the population supports the course of the federal government and the defense minister.
Despite all the approval, one should not forget that the people in Germany want above all more diplomacy to end the war in Ukraine.
In the ARD “Germany Trend” in January, 51 percent of respondents said that diplomatic efforts to end the war in Ukraine did not go far enough for them.
Furthermore, more spending on the military inevitably means more debt or cuts in other areas.
According to current plans, the money from the special fund will be used up as early as 2027.
Even if social security and territorial security are “two inseparable sides of the same coin,” as SPD General Secretary Kevin Kühnert recently put it, there is a risk that savings will be made elsewhere.
Green Party leader Ricarda Lang therefore spoke out in favor of new debt.
The financing “cannot come from the current budget alone”.
FDP defense politician Alexander Müller, on the other hand, would like to “re-prioritise the normal budget”.
(tpn)