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| Europe |
| Germany plans new homeland security army division |
| 2025-01-13 |
| [DW] Germany's military is to carve out a new land forces division responsible for homeland security. The unit will be dedicated to securing critical infrastructure and key military facilities in preparation for possible war. Gearing up for Russia? On Saturday, Germany's military, the Bundeswehr, confirmed that it would establish a major new land forces unit dedicated to securing vital infrastructure and military facilities inside the country..As part of the new structure, the homeland defense forces will be placed under the army's command from April. The move anticipates Germany's existing army divisions being deployed to NATO ...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. A cautionary tale of cost-benefit analysis.... 's external borders under NATO command as a deterrent or to defend against external aggression. WHY IS THIS HAPPENING NOW? German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius last year ordered a Bundeswehr reorganization to strengthen its defense capabilities with a unified operational command. Its establishment comes in line with the Osnabruck Decree, which aims to make Germany combat-ready for war against Russia in light of the invasion of Ukraine. At the time, the minister referred to the changed situation and the need to survive militarily in a defensive war. While Germany already has homeland defense units, these are generally non-active and made up of reservists, coming under the control of commands from Germany's individual states. The latest move would make them semi-active, under the command of the army. The division is to consist of active soldiers and reservists. The decree, the fourth regulation to restructure the Bundeswehr in its history, means that "national and alliance defense is once again the focus" due to heightened concerns about Russian aggression. It provides "the formal basis for a war-ready leadership organization." HOMELAND DEFENSE DIVISION TO STAFFED BY MORE THAN 6000 Military planners expect the unit to be formed in mid-March and to number some 6,000 personnel by the summer before being expanded further. The Bundeswehr currently has more than 260,000 personnel, including civilian staff. This comprises the army, navy and air force, as well as medical and other support services. Currently, the army comprises three divisions, the addition of a fourth major unit dedicated to homeland defence marks a significant enhancement of the Bundeswehr's capabilities. While the move was initially put on ice after the collapse of the coalition government in November, preparations are continuing. Germany's CDU/CSU conservative alliance, currently leading the polls ahead of a February 23 parliamentary election, says it wants to go further than the model already put forward by the center-left-led outgoing government of Chancellor Olaf Scholz. WHAT WILL THE FORCE DO? The Bundeswehr says the homeland defense division will be charged with the protection of ports, railway facilities and freight shipment points, as well as pipelines. It will also guard roads for troop deployment, bridges, transport hubs and digital infrastructure, the military said. Such capabilities are seen as particularly crucial should the rest of Germany's army be deployed to countries on the eastern flank of NATO, such as Poland or the Baltic states. The division will also safeguard Germany's role as an operational base and hub for NATO. As such, it will be tasked with defending both national and alliance property in times of crisis or conflict. It could also be used to give administrative assistance in the event of major accidents, terrorist attacks or future pandemics. An army front man on Saturday said the division would "lead its own and, if necessary, other troops as part of national territorial defense, in the event of assistance, in civil-military cooperation and in the implementation of joint Bundeswehr tasks in the area." |
| Posted by:trailing wife |
| #8 Freikorps is back |
| Posted by: DooDahMan 2025-01-13 16:35 |
| #7 Literally Migrant children pictured howling in pain as they crawl through razor wire to reach the US |
| Posted by: Skidmark 2025-01-13 13:07 |
| #6 ..to securing vital infrastructure and military facilities inside the country.. Charlie is in the wire. |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2025-01-13 10:40 |
| #5 German Chancellor Scholz Blocks €3 Billion Arms Package To Ukraine Ahead Of Election |
| Posted by: Skidmark 2025-01-13 08:14 |
| #4 Sweden to Provide Three Warships for NATO in Baltic Sea to Protect Against Infrastructure Sabotage |
| Posted by: Skidmark 2025-01-13 07:30 |
| #2 And here I thought from the title that they're (finally) going to do something about Jihad on their soil. |
| Posted by: Grom the Reflective 2025-01-13 04:02 |
| #1 "Chinese government is prepositioning on U.S. civilian critical infrastructure to lie in wait on those networks to be in a position to wreak havoc and inflict real world harm at a time & place of their choosing" - FBI, C. Wray No reason Germany wouldn't feel the same about Russia. |
| Posted by: Skidmark 2025-01-13 03:55 |