“Germany has returned,” he says Friedrich Mertzthe potential next chancellor of the country. This proposal would once cause terror to the Old Epirus. Now, Germany’s neighbors are pleased to see Berlin to take greater responsibility for their collective security. A huge step in this direction is the new legislation that allows for greater lending for defense spending. The legislation went through parliament on Tuesday and will give Mertz the financial means to promote the defense plan.

What will be harder is to change the German mentality. Draging a country that was pleased to leave behind its militaristic past in a era of defensive readiness will be a huge challenge.

If the huge cost of spending approved by Bundestag Overcome the rest of the legislative process and becomes law, Mertz will have a historic opportunity to transform the Bundeswehr, Germany’s armed forces.

In addition to turning the green light on 500 billion euros for infrastructure investment, the third largest economy in the world has essentially excluding defense spending from its usually harsh lending rules. This is above the Special Military Fund of 100 billion euros approved by Chancellor Allf Saltz in 2022. This huge financial margin will help the Germany To help prevent and defense in Europe now that they can no longer rely on US security guarantees.

However, there is one problem: the majority of Germans seem reluctant to fight for their country. All this cost of military equipment will be pointless if there are no people to handle arms. In a recent poll, 60% of the Germans said that “rather” or “certainly” would not defend Germany with military force, even if they were directly attacked. In women, the rate rose to 73%. The research also found that, on average, people were less willing to defend Germany the higher their educational level and the more leftists in their policy.

This is reflected in the long -term Bundeswehr recruitment crisis. A recent report found that the German army is lacking by 20,000 troops from the target of 203,000 people and that since 2019, the average age of staff has risen to 34 years from 32 because fewer young people are involved.

The government and the Bundeswehr have long been calling for some form of recruitment to resolve this problem. Marcel Bohnert, a senior army officer and Bundeswehr deputy chief, recently said that it was no sense to hope for more volunteers. He argued that the army had tried everything, from modern marketing campaigns on social media, to work reports and school visits.

Many younger Germans resisted the recruitment before it was suspended in 2011. Until that point, it had already been reduced to just 6 months (during the Cold War, it was 15 months in West Germany and 18 months in eastern Germany). There was also a political service equivalent, which young men could choose to do instead. However, many were relaxed with the forced National Service.

When I was at school in Germany in the early 2000s, my male friends did everything they could to fail in the medical fitness exams as soon as they received their letters. Some ate a lot of eggs to burden their kidney values. Others were taking drugs. One pretended to be suffering from mental illness. He worked for most of them. In 2010, only 32,673 young men completed the military service, although the government wanted 50,000.

Of course, the world is not the one who was 20 years ago. A Great War returned to Europe And many feel that Epirus stands alone in front of Russian aggression. Studies have shown that the fear of war is now the number one concern of young Germans. A poll showed that in 2019, just less than half of you young people from 12 to 25, they were worried about “war in Europe”. Last year the rate was 81%.

However, fear may not be a strong enough motivation for action. At present, only 11,434 men and women complete their military service on a voluntary basis. When recent polls were raised whether the military service in Germany had to come back, 70% of the Germans said yes. But, among the under 30 years – that is, those who should really serve – only a minority was positive.

Last year, I attended a conference that Karl-Theodor Zu Guttenberg spoke. It was his decision as German defense minister in 2010 to suspend compulsory recruitment. He now argued that he had been wrong. A young man from the public got up, annoyed and asked, “Why spend a year of my life doing something you want to do?” Obviously not alone …

A study conducted by the Bundeswehr in 2022 found that the main motives for those involved in the army is that they feel that the army offers “a good place for work, companionship and teamwork. But not pay, hours of work or mobility. ” Therefore, there is room for the improvement of the army a more attractive career choice.

But the biggest challenge remains. And it is nothing more than convincing the young Germans that for their country and its values, it is worth risking their lives. The truth is that, while the army enjoys steadily high levels of confidence in society, German society has emerged from the moral bankruptcy of Hitler’s genocide warfare rightly punished and cautious for military culture. This heritage lives in hearts and minds to this day.

When Bundeswehr performed her traditional ceremony ‘Grand Tattoo’ (Großer Zapfenstreich) In 2021 to honor the 90,000 German soldiers who served in Afghanistan and especially the 60 of those who had fallen, there was extensive rage. The 19th -century tradition, which includes torch troups, has been used by all German armies for over a century, including the Nazis and both by the German post -war forces and today’s Bundeswehr. However, public figures such as former Greens politician Jutta Ditfurtth were disgusted by the spectacle of German military traditions.

The incident is an example of the careful balance that Germany must achieve in order to make it more comfortable with the defense of itself and others without forgetting its history in the process. The armies of France, Britain and the US draw much of their proud modern military cultures from the same story that causes feelings of guilt and anxiety in the collective soul of Germany. They will not act as models for Germany, which will have to find its own path.

Approval of a larger defense budget is nothing compared to what will follow to make Germany fight. Bundeswehr does not have a long -term military tradition of fighting for democracy and freedom. Mertz will have to find a way to make this by achieving a transformation that transcends politics and money.