German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen has apologized to top brass for her remarks about "weak leadership" in the military. But she warned there may be more revelations to come.
Image: Reuters/V. Kessler
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Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen had met with around 100 generals and civilian army leaders in an attempt to smooth out the widely publicized row triggered by her criticism of the Bundeswehr.
Von der Leyen praised German soldiers, according to a report in "Der Spiegel" magazine published on Friday, saying that the troops "provide an indispensable service to our country."
Germany's defense forces are reeling from a series of scandals, the latest being the arrest of Lieutenant Franco A., who allegedly posed as a Syrian refugee and planned a terror strike that would be blamed on immigrants.
More to come?
In a television interview on Friday evening, von der Leyen warned that there may be other, similar incidents in the Bundeswehr which could come to light: "We must be prepared for this," she said. "It is my serious conviction that what we know so far is not everything but that there will be more."
"That is bitter for us, and all of us in the Bundeswehr," von der Leyen said on ARD's "Tagesthemen."
Von der Leyen said it was unclear if Franco A. had actually planned attacks. "We do not know yet," she said. "But it can not be ruled out." The CDU minister said the issues had to be investigated by the Federal Prosecutor. The question of the possibility of right-wing networks among troops was also still open, she said.
Other issues concerning the Bundeswehr include reports of sexual harassment of female recruits, degrading training methods, and some 280 suspected cases of right-wing extremism.
Several days ago, the minister told the German public broadcaster ZDF that the army had "an attitude problem" and was suffering from "weak leadership on multiple levels." The interview caused outrage among soldiers' representatives, who slammed her remarks as sweeping and "massively damaging" to some 250,000 people in active duty. Others questioned why the 58-year-old minister, who has headed the army since 2013, did not sort out leadership problems after taking office.
'Glossing over' problems
Meeting the top brass on Thursday, von der Leyen said she regretted her remarks and stressed that soldiers deserved recognition and gratitude. She said she should have made her thanks to the military clear before giving a five-minute interview on right-wing extremism, "Der Speigel" quoted her as saying.
"I am sorry I didn't do it, I regret that," she added.
At the same time, von der Leyen also warned that multiple scandals had several elements in common.
Bundeswehr scandals: Von der Leyen on the defensive
For German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen, 2017 has so far been a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad year. She's had to weather numerous Bundeswehr scandals and is under fire for not supporting her own troops.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/S. Sauer
Von der Leyen under fire
Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen wanted to show she's not blind to problems among her own troops. In light of the most recent scandal, she openly criticized army leadership, saying the Bundeswehr had an "attitude problem." But Bundeswehr officials found her comments to be outrageous. Their response to the defense minister's criticism: "Leadership goes from the top down."
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/G. Fischer
A fake Syrian refugee
The story causing the uproar: Bundeswehr lieutenant Franco A. was allegedly planning a terrorist attack and led a double life, pretending to be a Syrian refugee. He was granted partial asylum status as a war refugee in December 2016. His alleged goal: another attack blamed on a refugee. Bundeswehr officials are said to have known about Franco A.'s right-wing tendencies since 2014, but did nothing.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/F. Rumpenhorst
Abuse in Bad Reichenhall mountain rangers unit
The Bundeswehr is currently investigating 275 cases of suspected right-wing extremism. But they're also dealing with other types of scandals. In March 2017, the public learned about the case of a lance corporal who had suffered months of abuse in a Bavarian mountain rangers unit. The victim reported being threatened and sexually harassed in 2015 and 2016. Prosecutors investigated 14 people.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/S. Hoppe
Female recruits forced to pole-dance
The biggest scandal of von der Leyen's term so far: the horror stories coming out of the Staufer army base in Pfullendorf. In January, it was revealed that superior officers there forced recruits to undress and perform sexually-motivated acts and filmed them. Female recruits were forced to pole dance as part of an "entrance exam." The top Bundeswehr training commander was fired as a result.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/T. Warnack
Many cases of right-wing extremism investigated
According to a report from Germany's federal parliamentary commissioner for the Bundeswehr, Hans-Peter Bartels, 2016 wasn't a great year for the Bundeswehr, either. There were around 60 incidents related to alleged right-wing extremism or "violations against the bases of Germany's free democratic constitutional structure." Troops shared anti-Semitic images and music or did the Nazi salute.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/S. Sauer
Death on board the Gorch Fock
The Bundeswehr wasn't immune to scandals before von der Leyen became defense minister in December 2013. One that garnered significant public attention was the death of a 25-year-old recruit on the Navy training vessel Gorch Fock in 2010. The woman fell from the rigging during an exercise. As a consequence, other cadets refused to climb the rigging. Officer training on the ship was suspended.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/C. Rehder
The birth of the Bundeswehr
Directly after World War II, Germany was not allowed to have an army. The Bundeswehr had its start in West Germany in 1955. After reunification, the Bundeswehr took in 20,000 soldiers from East Germany's armed forces. A big change came in 1999, when the Bundeswehr first participated in an international conflict: the Kosovo War. Before that, they had only gone abroad for peacekeeping missions.
Image: picture alliance/akg-images
No more mandatory service
Today the Bundeswehr has roughly 178,200 active soldiers. As of March 2017, 11.4 percent of them are women. Until 2011, men were required to do mandatory military service, the length of which varied between nine and 18 months. Today, the Bundeswehr has to appeal to young people to recruit soldiers. The most recent scandals are making that that more and more difficult.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/S. Sauer
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"It took a long time, it fermented, some have ducked away [from issues], glossed over them and trivialized them," she said. "In all of these cases, our mechanisms to prevent offenses and violations against the internal leadership did not go into action."
The minister also said the army was facing multiple challenges, including the so-called "Islamic State" militia, cyberwarfare, the Crimean crisis and extensive reforms in various areas, all of them "costing us a lot of energy and attention."
Von der Leyen said she wished that the military had dealt with "hidden right-wing extremism" earlier in a more systematic manner.
