The Ultimate Goal Hans-Peter Bartels, the chairman of the German parliament’s defense committee and the recipient of Kasdorf’s letter, left no doubt as to the final destination of all these additions. “The hour has come, finally, for concrete steps towards a European Army,” he told Die Welt. Germany’s Defense Minister Ursela von der Leyen has a similar goal. “Today we embark a new era of integration,” she said as the Dutch Airmobile brigade official joined the German Army back in June. “This cooperation will continue and even intensify. Our new partnership can also be seen as a model for Europe and its common security and defense policy,” she announced. Is his letter, General Kasdorf wrote that Germany is a “driver and a pioneer” when it comes to international cooperation between armed forces. As part of this effort, Bartels suggested that Germany may put some German soldiers under the command of other nations. This may happen, but it will have limits. Germany’s constitution, and its subsequent interpretation by the Constitutional Court, ensures that the German parliament must remain in ultimate control of the German Army. Besides, the job of the defense committee that Bartels chairs is to advise and scrutinize, not to make decisions. Bartels is a member of Social Democratic Party (SDP), not the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), which is the senior coalition member. The decision makers in the German defense ministry have given no indication that they would be willing to sign over parts of the German Army to other nations.
Posted on: Tue, 12 Aug 2014 18:37:48 +0000
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