Armed Forces undergo changes in strategy and deployments. Armed Forces Change Strategies and Deployments. - The Defense Ministry seeks to strengthen the German armed forces' reserve.
In the Ministry of Defense, plans are in the works for a considerably expanded reserve force of the Bundeswehr. This reserve should, like during the Cold War, be trained and outfitted so it can reinforce or replace active troops in combat, according to Lieutenant General Alexander Hoppe, Deputy Inspector General and Representative for Reservist Affairs, speaking to the German Press Agency in Berlin.
The objective of the military strategists is to have 60,000 individuals as reservists in a "basic order," who are planned and assigned for a specific task. Hoppe stated, "I am convinced that we must adapt the reserve to the current security policy challenges so that it can support the Bundeswehr in performing its tasks of national and alliance defense in a reasonable manner."
In the ministry, they are also testing to determine how many people there are who could be called up for service ("unordered reservist service") and be suitable in the event of a defense crisis. This refers to the citizens who have served in the Bundeswehr but have not been ordered. This group is large but dwindling since conscription was suspended in 2011.
"It melts away every year"
"There are different estimates. We assume that there are approximately 800,000 who can still be called up for service. These are basically all those who have ever served in the Bundeswehr and have left and are within the age limits, including the most recent cohorts of conscripts," said Hoppe. And: "If one considers the age issue, then one also knows that this is decreasing annually. Therefore, we need to navigate against this trend and also find and recruit additional personnel for the reserve."
For the revised defense plans of NATO, the Bundeswehr, which has shrunk to 181,500 soldiers and soldiers despite a so-called personnel recruitment campaign in the past year, must nevertheless increase significantly. The NATO plans mean that the personnel target of 203,000 soldiers must be raised "towards significantly over 272,000" men and women in the armed forces, as reported by the Spiegel. The reserve can only be a building block. Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) will present his proposal for a conscription model on Wednesday.
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The German Ministry of Defense intends to expand the reserve force of the German Armed Forces, known as the Bundeswehr, following a strategy shift during the Cold War. This expanded reserve force will consist of 60,000 individuals assigned for specific tasks, according to Lieutenant General Alexander Hoppe. The Ministry is also examining the potential pool of individuals available for unordered reservist service during a defense crisis, estimated to be around 800,000 former Bundeswehr personnel. However, the trend of declining personnel in this age group necessitates the recruitment of additional reserves. As part of NATO's revised defense plans, Germany's Bundeswehr must significantly increase its personnel, rising from 181,500 to over 272,000 soldiers, including women. Defense Minister Boris Pistorius is due to present a conscription model proposal on Wednesday. This military expansion is a response to the changing strategic landscape and the need for stronger alliances, such as the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
