Image source: topwar.ru
According to the German Commissioner for the Army Eva Hoegl, the Bundeswehr needs to be strengthened, and not only in terms of material equipment. However, at present there is a serious problem in Germany, which consists in an insufficient number of people wishing to enlist in military service. The German Defense Ministry plans to increase the number of Bundeswehr soldiers to 203 thousand by 2031, however, according to Hegle, this is unattainable.
According to the German TV channel N-TV, Hoegl also sees a serious problem in the fact that those who enter the service in the Bundeswehr do not necessarily stay there. Hegl also noted a decrease in the number of applications received by the Bundeswehr, as well as a high dropout rate among recruits. In a number of federal lands, the number of dropouts for various reasons reaches 34%. This is an absolute record. In her opinion, the German army is facing problems with personnel, more serious than with material support.
According to her, despite the strong influence exerted by the Bundeswehr on the labor market, citizens applying to join the army subsequently do not receive a response from a potential employer for a year, which is completely unacceptable.
Earlier, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius also stressed that the existing problems in the Bundeswehr equipment will not be eliminated during this decade. This is due to the lack of sufficient financing and production facilities available to the German industry.
To modernize the army and achieve the goal set by the leadership of the NATO bloc regarding the allocation of 2% of economic output for defense needs, the German authorities have created a special fund for the Bundeswehr in the amount of 100 billion euros. Pistorius considers this amount insufficient and demands an increase in the budget financing of the army by another 10 billion euros.
