German Bundeswehr army soldiers. © Michaela Rehle / Reuters
Defense News: German military too small to aid ‘collective defense,’ official says
For the largest economy in Europe, Germany’s military — the Bundeswehr — sure is small.
In fact, although smaller missions, like those in Afghanistan, remain possible, a larger conflict would likely catch the Bundeswehr off-guard, said Hans-Peter Bartels, parliamentary commissioner for the armed forces, in an interview with a German magazine.
Although the budget has increased slightly following criticism by U.S. President Donald Trump, the operational readiness of the German forces has further deteriorated this past year.
“The hard currency, in which the success of the [defense] minister is measured, is the readiness of the Bundeswehr,” Bartels said. “And that has not really improved in the last four years, but rather has become worse.”
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Update: German Official: Military Is Virtually ‘Not Deployable for Collective Defense’ (Washington Free Beacon)
WNU Editor: The German military has the 9th largest defense budget in the world, and they cannot even field an effective force?!?!?!?
