View from Berlin: German government intensifies campaign for militarism and war

Against the backdrop of the deep political crisis in the United States and the possibility of former president Donald Trump winning the presidential election, Germany’s ruling class is accelerating its return to militarism, writes Johannes Stern, the editor of the German-language edition of the World Socialist Web Site.

In an extensive interview with the Tagesspiegel newspaper, the top military brass, Inspector General of the Bundeswehr (Armed Forces), Carsten Breuer, reiterated Defense Minister Boris Pistorius’ (Social Democrat, SPD) call for Germany to become more independent of Washington in terms of foreign policy and to make “society as a whole” again “fit for war.”

“During his presidency, Trump has brutally held up a mirror to us Europeans and made it clear that we must strengthen the European pillar of the alliance and take on a role that is more independent of the US — something that other US presidents before him have also called for,” explained the Bundeswehr’s most senior soldier.”

In fact, Breuer’s own statements make it clear that the NATO powers are the main aggressors in the Ukraine war. With their decades-long encirclement of Russia, they have downright provoked the Kremlin’s reactionary invasion. Now they are escalating the conflict further and further in order to bring Russia to its knees militarily and realise long-cherished rearmament and war plan.

In the interview, Breuer called for, among other things:

Additional funds for this year’s war budget in order to establish the “full operational readiness” of the Bundeswehr and to make the necessary “new acquisitions.” “The goal is effective structures that make us fit for war.”

The swift reintroduction of compulsory military service: “We urgently need military service because it trains the future reservists that we will have to be able to call on in the event of defence.” Anyone who performs “basic military service for six months” could “be part of Germany’s operational plan in the event of defence.”

In other words, it is about recruiting cannon fodder for a direct war against Russia. This is what the secret, 1000-page “Operation Plan Germany” is all about—a detailed concept for the total mobilisation for war in all areas of society.

Increaseed military aid for Ukraine: Breuer emphasised in the interview that Kiev remained “dependent on Western solidarity and support in order to be able to defend itself.” Everything was being done “to ensure that Ukraine continues to receive the support it urgently needs.”

Breuer also praised the permanent deployment of a German combat brigade to Lithuania and defended the planned stationing of long-range US precision weapons in Germany. This was “not an aggressive act on our part, but a reaction” to the Russian arms build-up. This is the familiar propaganda. “In reality, the stationing serves direct military strikes against Moscow,” as the WSWS emphasises in its statement “No stationing of US missiles in Germany! Stop the danger of nuclear escalation!”

In terms of foreign policy, Berlin is once again beating the war drum against Russia, supporting Israel’s genocide against the Palestinians and working to organise the whole of Europe under its leadership in order to pursue the interests of German imperialism globally. Domestically, this programme goes hand in hand with massive social attacks and the establishment of a police state.

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