This is not a German military action, Defence Minister Franz-Josef Jung insisted at a press conference in Berlin on Wednesday.

Bundeswehr soldiers in Afghanistan’s northern province of Kunduz are under the command of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF).

Some 300 members of the Bundeswehr Quick Reaction Force are participating in the offensive along with some 800 Afghan soldiers and 100 police.

No new orders but a new situation

Asked whether the fact that the army was now deploying heavy weapons for the first time lent a new quality to Germany’s role in Afghanistan, the country’s most senior military officer, General Wolfgang Schneiderhan, said there were no “new orders”.

But “there is a new situation. Since about mid-March there has been a visible change of tactics -- a transition from bomb blasts to more military-like action. So it was necessary for the Quick Reaction Force or the reserve to use the possibilities they have to create deterrents.”

Opposition warns of “escalation”

The opposition made warning sounds. Winfried Nachtweih, a Member of Parliament and defence spokesman for the Greens said: “It’s a spiral and one has to be careful that this doesn’t become an escalation without end.”

There is more and more discomfort in Germany among the population about the army’s role in Afghanistan. The word "war" has never been formally used for the army's military activities in Afghanistan.

Germany has been responsible for training police officers and supporting civilian reconstruction efforts.

Recent opinion polls suggest that a slight majority of the German population would prefer it if the Bundeswehr left Afghanistan.

Army insists on importance of its role

The army, however, insists that it is playing a crucial role. The latest offensive in Kunduz is supposed to bring some stability ahead of the presidential elections that are taking place on Aug. 20.

General Schneiderhan thinks the offensive will be over soon: ““What we’re doing right now is contributing to the stabilisation by making sure that proper elections can take place in the province of Kunduz too. And the others seem to want to hinder that.”

Defence Minister Jung insisted it was the aim of the German army in Afghanistan to enable the Afghan security forces to protect the country themselves: “When I see how -- and I’m talking about the current operation in Kunduz -- the Afghan forces are handling things then I can say it’s going well in my opinion.”

He also said civilian reconstruction efforts were going well, with millions of children now going to school again, including girls and a majority of the population now having access to medical treatment. He added that it was a little known fact that there were 300 newspapers, 60 radio stations and 20 television channels in Afghanistan.

Author: Peter Stützle/Anne Thomas
Editor: Thomas Bärthlein