Allies - Our most powerful

Allies - Our most powerful ally in terms of numbers of troops and hitting power during the Cold War was West Germany.

They built the largest army that their post-war constitution would allow, with the aid of a draft that stopped just barely shy of Swiss-style National Service. During the Vietnam and Carter years, the German military looked down its noses at the quality and fighting ability of the US Army - justifiably so.

But the radical reversal of US doctrine after Vietnam, and the end of the Cold War, have reversed the old roles. Today, the German Bundeswehr (Federal Armed Forces) are still a largely conscript force - but the conscripts' training has been cut to a fraction of its Cold War level. In the meantime, the budget to train and equip this large force of draftees has been slashed even further. The result, according to this fascinating article in the Frankfurter Allgemeine, has left the German military a husk of its former self.

While German professional troops - the HSK commandos and Fallschirmjäger paratroopers that served in Afghanistan - are excellent, the conscripts are a sort of Peace Corps with guns, prompting calls to abolish the draft and create a volunteer, professional military that can actually fight:

After decades of priding itself on its “peace force,“ Germany's “civil society“ is now opposing an “intervention force,“ which is probably why Struck and the entire government do not want all too much military intervention. And this is also why the military draft will only be modified rather than being restructured to fit the war concept of the 21st century.
The Germans are closing their eyes to the globalization of threats. After all, if things get serious, that is what the Americans are there for. Those who believe this are happy to keep the current oversized but underfinanced and poorly equipped Bundeswehr.
Real warriors - which any army needs - are hard to find in the Bundeswehr, as became clear when a commander was asked recently to explain the Bundeswehr's mission. He cited peacekeeping missions, the deployment of conscripts as “nurses“ in the Balkans, and the German military's role in combating natural disasters. All the while, the U.S. military is widening its lead over Germany in terms of military equipment to the point that the two forces cannot be deployed together anymore.

That's a key point to remember, especially if you're one of those who wondered why the US didn't actively seek out non-British troops to fight alongside us in Iraq; the troops of Germany and France aren't equipped or trained to anywhere close to our standards. They (the non-special-forces among them, anyway) would be more a liability than an asset.

So the solution seems clear right?

Ah, but not in a nation run by a Sozialdemokraten (Think John Marty in lederhosen)/Green coalition.

The Bundeswehr's political and military leadership is hesitating to make the necessary decisions in favor of quality at the expense of quantity. But is the concept of a small but powerful mobile force built around professional soldiers, with just a minor role reserved for draftees, really a viable option? The answer is yes. Only thus can the Bundeswehr save what remains of its military substance.

The Allgemeine is, by the way, moderate-right in outlook, and has gone on record favoring a professional military. Watching the German media take sides on this has been fascinating.

Posted by Mitch at May 4, 2003 08:25 PM