Half a million soldiers in 10 years? Too late! The German media demands an army ready now

Waiting a decade for half a million soldiers is too long, Germany should communicate to Vladimir Putin its ability to defend effectively now – writes the daily “Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung” in a commentary on the presented Bundeswehr development strategy.

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius presented the first strategy for the development of the armed forces.

The expansion of the Bundeswehr was divided into three stages. In the short term, the priority will be to quickly increase defense readiness by 2029. The next phase, scheduled for 2035, assumes a significant increase in capabilities in all operational domains – land, air, sea, cyber and space – in line with NATO goals and national defense plans. In the longer term, by the end of 2039, Germany wants to create more innovative and technologically advanced armed forces.

After completing the first two stages, the Bundeswehr will have a total number of 460,000. soldiers ready to fight, including 260,000 in active service and 200 thousand reservists.

In a comment on the strategy, FAZ columnist Reinhard Mueller writes that the Bundeswehr “must use” its potential faster and more effectively. He criticizes Pistorius for “banal conclusions, such as the fact that the German armed forces should reduce bureaucracy and in the future give up unnecessary reports and reports.”

In Mueller's assessment, “it is crucial that every potential aggressor receives a clear signal: no one can afford to attack Germany” and this “must be communicated now.” In his opinion, Pistorius lacks such clarity.

“If someone repeats like a mantra that Putin will be able to attack NATO by 2029 at the latest, he should not postpone plans until later. Half a million soldiers ready only in ten years is definitely too long,” we read in “FAZ.”

A columnist for the German daily notes that “according to some estimates, Ukraine will soon have as many drone operators as the Bundeswehr has soldiers in total.” “Kiev has long been showing how to improvise brilliantly. So Pistorius is rightly not the only one who calls this attacked state a teacher,” adds Mueller.

Mateusz Obremski (PAP)

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