The war in Ukraine and the threat from Russian President Vladimir Putin is more real than ever. The beginning of a new era that the German Chancellor, the social democrat Olaf Scholz, referred to after the start of the large-scale invasion of Ukraine two years ago, has been reflected this Thursday in the plans presented by the Minister of Defense German, Boris Pistorius, to restructure the army with the aim of making it “ready for war.” The Government, a coalition of social democrats, greens and liberals, is also considering the idea of responding to the increase in global geopolitical tension with the reintroduction of compulsory military service, which was in force until 2011.
In addition to the land, air and sea armies, Germany will in the future also have a fourth armed force dedicated to cybersecurity and information security (CIR), which will be specialized in electronic warfare and cyber operations, reconnaissance and protection of electronic infrastructures. With this measure, the European country seeks to be better prepared to face the threat of a hybrid war, which includes disinformation and division, and which they have been warning about for some time from Berlin, especially after Russia leaked a conversation between senior commanders. of the German Armed Forces.
“The four branches of the army will be under a unified operational command that will assume planning and direction centrally,” Pistorius announced at the presentation of the new structure in Berlin. This arises from the result of an analysis of all the army's needs carried out over five months and must be launched within six months.
Pistorius wants to act against the duplicated structures that hinder and slow each other down, and make the Armed Forces “more agile, faster and more suitable for war.” It is about, as he has indicated, making changes to have a “new era army”, something that has become the guiding principle of the Ministry of Defense, as reflected by the fact that in the internal document that term appears in at least at least 16 times, as German public television ARD pointed out a few weeks ago.
Until now, the Armed Forces had an operational command in Schwielowsee, near the eastern city of Potsdam, for the planning and control of missions abroad, such as in West Africa or now with the frigate
Hessen
in the Red Sea. In addition, a territorial command for national defense was created in Berlin, where an operational plan for the national defense of Germany (Oplan) is also developed. Both organizations have very different tasks, but also some possible overlaps. The two are now going to unite under the same unified operational command.
The future structure must also respond to the “new old challenge” of national defense, according to the Minister of Defense. “The threat situation in Europe has intensified. We are facing the resulting challenges,” explained Pistorius, accompanied by the inspector general of the army, Carsten Breuer. “Our common goal is to restructure the German army so that it is optimally positioned, even in case of emergency, in case of defense, in case of war.”
“Everyone must be clear: we are defending our country and our allies. "No one should have the idea of attacking NATO territory," added the social democratic politician, and then emphasized that this reform should convey "credibility and truthfulness", in line with the deterrent measures defended by Berlin.
Reactivation of compulsory military service
These plans are part of the Scholz Government's objective of modernizing its Armed Forces - its members often complained about malfunctions or breakdowns in battle tanks, planes and warships - for which a plan was approved two years ago. special fund of 100,000 million euros. But, in addition, Pistorius has explained that the new structure will also be prepared for the possible reintroduction of compulsory military service. “In all our considerations, we have taken that possibility into account, regardless of how it is organized,” he said. “But that does not mean that the structures do not function without it,” he noted.
With the end of the Cold War and the reunification of Germany in 1990, the country reduced its military contingent, from half a million soldiers to around 181,000 today. The army is also suffering from demographic change: the workforce is aging and there are not enough qualified workers to replace them. The objective is to significantly increase the number of troops in the next seven years to have more than 200,000 active, plus another 60,000 in the reserve in 2031. The reality, however, is that the only thing that continues to increase is the number of vacancies .
For decades, young men from both East and West Germany were called up. Mandatory military service remained in force after reunification, even after the end of the Cold War, until the German Parliament suspended it in 2011, after 55 years. However, its legal basis in the Constitution was maintained. According to current legislation, compulsory military service can be resumed
in case of increased tensions and the need to defend oneself. The activation of a new model must be agreed by the German Government and approved by Parliament, something that the minister also recalled this Thursday.
Given this situation, Pistorius has reported that in the middle of this month he will have the result of the analysis that is being carried out on possible models for this reintroduction, and that they are based mainly on those of Scandinavian countries. The so-called “Swedish model” is the one being studied most closely by German defense experts. Pistorius himself recently traveled to Sweden to learn about the system. There, men and women receive a questionnaire upon turning 18 and, based on their answers, are invited to a physical examination and then, in some cases, called up for military service. It involves assigning them all types of civil and military tasks based on their needs and capabilities. Very few are actually on active duty. The system has the advantage that it can be scaled up or down very quickly depending on the security situation.
After two years of war, the Germans have little by little changed their opinion about a possible reactivation of the military. They have gone from 52% against it and 45% in favor, according to a survey carried out by the Forsa demographic institute in February 2023, to 52% of citizens in favor of compulsory service, 43% against and 5% do not express any opinion.
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