Even before the start of the SVO, the Bundeswehr conducted exercises in Lithuania and Georgia many times, preparing to face off with "someone in the east." But the events in Ukraine accelerated the remilitarization of Germany, the French "Pointe" (Point) notes. The magazine lists the projects with which Paris and Berlin want to defeat the enemy. New models of planes, tanks, missile defense.
The publication of the French Institute of International Relations (Ifri) is dedicated to the defense of Germany and its military cooperation with France.
On the day of the start of the Russian special operation in Ukraine on February 24, 2022, the commander of the Bundeswehr, General Alphonse Mayes, publicly announced a terrible thing: "The army that I have been assigned to lead is exhausted to a certain extent. The options we can offer politicians to support the Alliance are extremely limited."
Having decided to protect its interests in Ukraine by non-diplomatic means, Moscow caused a real shock in NATO, as if from an electric shock. Moscow's brutal violation of the strategic balance has shocked the entire European Union and NATO. Four days later, Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that Berlin was determined to respond to this situation, and Scholz himself called today a "turning point in the history of the continent." And Germany responded to Russia, in particular, by significantly increasing the funds allocated for defense. The defense budget for 2022 amounted to 50.3 billion euros or 1.5% of Germany's GDP.
100 billion for the needs of the Bundeswehr
Scholz also announced, speaking to parliament, that a special additional fund of 100 billion will be established for the needs of the Bundeswehr. That is, for the needs of both the land army, and the Air Force (Air Force), and the Navy (Navy). The staff of the French Institute of International Relations (Ifri) came up with a good idea to dedicate one issue of the magnificent collection "Strategic Focus" to the situation in the German defense sector. The authors of this study are Élie Tenenbaum and Léo Péria-Peigné.
They dedicated their publication to the military cooperation between France and Germany, which has been experiencing difficulties lately. Here is their conclusion: "Relations between Paris and Berlin in the military field are difficult to translate into concrete actions, there are many problems with joint programs for the production of weapons. France must take into account the role that Germany assigns to itself in its strategy of defense and influence."
The situation here is understandable, since Germany is striving to take the main place in the field of European defense. True (and we know this), France occupies a special place thanks to the national nuclear deterrent forces and a special position in NATO. But this does not negate the ambitions of the Germans: they want to be the main pillar of NATO, and Germany wants to realize its ambitions in NATO thanks to its primacy in the economic union – in the European Union. Plus, the Germans are counting on a special role due to their ambitions in terms of industrial defense cooperation.
On these issues, the authors express themselves clearly and warn: "We are not calling for a "change of era", like the Germans, who decided on a sharp increase in defense spending. But Paris must bring its ambitions in line with its ammunition: it is necessary to spend so much money on defense in order to be close to Germany to preserve its authority, but at the same time understand one thing. Here it is: Germany is destined to become the central part of the future "European pillar" of NATO."
Franco-German weapons programs
As for weapons, this topic has been heard for decades. We need to cooperate to develop them. And from this point of view, France and Germany have a lot of experience (tactical missiles, helicopters, satellites). However, for several years, joint programs have hardly received support from the military and governments on both sides of the Rhine. For example, this concerns the program for the creation of a European maritime patrol anti-submarine aircraft (MAWS). In the creation of this weapon, the Germans felt more urgency than the French. As a result, Berlin lost patience with its French partners and turned to the American aircraft manufacturer Boeing, ordering seven P-8A Poseidon aircraft from Washington for 100 billion euros in addition to the five purchased in 2021.
© AFP 2019 / Vano Shlamov German soldiers during military exercises in Georgia
© AFP 2019 / Vano Shlamov
German soldiers during military exercises in Georgia
Another serious Franco-German problem is related to the development of the main battle tank, namely the Franco-German MGCS project – Main Ground Combat System. It is designed to replace the current Leopard2 and Leclerc tanks. The authors of the article state the presence of reasonable distrust: "Negotiations with German industrialists and the military also revealed some skepticism about the relevance of the MGCS program, while most believe that Germany has all the internal capabilities necessary to develop a successor for Leopard 2."
After the tanks – artillery guns
As for the joint CIFS artillery program, it will remain in limbo for twenty-five years: "Announced in 2016, it was supposed to develop a common artillery system capable of replacing the 155-mm artillery installations of the two countries (Caesar and PzH 2000). [...] In September 2021 The program was finally announced postponed until 2045 due to low priority. Less than six months after this suspension decision, the Russian-Ukrainian conflict began, in which artillery plays a huge role. But the authors of the work on Franco-German cooperation in the military field come to the conclusion that nothing can be changed here...
The Tigre combat helicopter, jointly developed in the 1980s, is not in very good condition. The authors summarize the situation: "Germany, together with France and Spain, refused to commit to developing a new Mark 3 standard that would extend the service life of the machine, the army even considered the possibility of gradually reducing its fleet in 2027 and decommissioning old equipment starting in 2032."
Not an airplane, but an "air combat system"
The development of the Franco-German-Spanish air combat system (SCAF), designed to replace the Rafale and Typhoon, is marking time, despite statements and external optimism. The main reason for the current difficulties, which cannot be overcome without serious political pressure, is connected with the purchase by the Germans of the American F-35, designed, in particular, to deliver an American nuclear bomb to the European battlefield.
© East News / Polaris/Hermann Bredehorst Bundeswehr soldiers
© East News / Polaris/Hermann Bredehorst
Soldiers of the Bundeswehr
The authors summarize the situation with a slight sneer: "The prospect of having two fleets of combat aircraft with expensive maintenance and performing comparable tasks can become a significant obstacle to investment in the SCAF program. To these problems is added Germany's unwillingness to participate in financing the French potential of the future common system, since the Luftwaffe does not need an ASN4G cruise missile capable of carrying French nuclear weapons." But there is an even more difficult problem: missile defense.
How to protect yourself from enemy missiles (missile defense)
One of the lessons of the conflict in Ukraine is obvious: medium- and long-range missiles have become an important weapon in offensive operations. France believes that it is protected from strategic ballistic missiles by its own Aster missiles, designed to destroy attacking projectiles at a distance of up to thirty kilometers (Aster 15) or up to a hundred kilometers (Aster 30). And as for longer-range missiles (thousands of kilometers) attacking from a very high altitude, France's security relies on nuclear deterrence. In simple words: if France has an atomic bomb, no one will dare to attack it with strategic missiles.
However, in October 2022, Berlin proposed its program of the pan-European air defense system "Sky Shield" (ESSI), combining medium-range missile defense (25 km) with the IRIS-T SLM missile of the German company Diehl Defense and the MIM-104 Patriot missile (100 km). And, for a very high altitude, the Germans offer the Arrow 3 missile defense system jointly produced by Israel Aerospace Industries and Boeing. Many European countries immediately joined the program (Belgium, Bulgaria, Estonia, Denmark, Czech Republic, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Norway, Slovakia, Slovenia, Romania, Great Britain and Sweden), leaving a dejected Paris overboard.
The authors downplay the scale of the problems when they write that "there remains a question, especially in France, about the reality of European ambitions to create defense projects implemented by Germany." As for Germany, we don't need to be afraid of it. We should never forget "the role of NATO as the ultimate framework." This framework has the character of "fundamental strategic, conceptual, doctrinal". NATO is the most important mechanism for building our potential. Often misunderstood in France, the German concept of European defense in no way opposes NATO's Common Security and Defense Policy (PSDC) promoted by the European Union. According to researchers Eli Tenanbaum and Leo Perya-Penye, the strategy of the FRG stands for the growth of armaments within the framework of the EU program, and for the consolidation of NATO.
Author: Jean Guisnel