Germany Renews Afghanistan Mandate

Posted on 10/17/2008 by Chirol

Here is a quick summary of an article in the Tagesschau, a German language news source.

Background

Under the German constitution, only parliament has the power to send German troops into combat, not the Chancellor. This condition is based on World War II as well as the clause written into the constitution that Germany may not engage in Angriffskriege, or wars of aggression. It can thus only act with a UN mandate or lacking that, a NATO mandate (as in Kosovo). Additionally, it must vote yearly to renew that mandate. For Afghanistan, the Bundestag votes October 15th of every year.

Renewal

bwehr.jpgThe Bundestag voted to new renew the German army’s mandate for Afghanistan by 14 months, i.e. until December 13th 2009. The vote was 442 yes, 96 no and 32 abstaining indicating overwhelming support for the mission, contrary to news reports. It also raises the maximum troop levels which the Ministry of Defense can send to 4,500, an increase of 1,000 soldiers. Germany is currently the third largest provider of ISAF troops.

However, Defense Minister Franz Josef Jung noted that the increase does not mean an additional thousand soldiers will immediately be sent. He stressed it means more flexibility for Germany in responding to the ongoing situation and that less engagement or pulling out is not an alternative as it would mean breaking Germany’s promises and failing to participate in its international responsibility.

About Chirol

Sir Ignatius Valentine Chirol (1852 - 1929) was a journalist, prolific author, world historian, and British diplomat. He began his career as a foreign correspondent and later became editor of the London Times. After two decades as a journalist he joined Her Majesty's Foreign Ministry as a diplomat and was subsequently knighted for his distinguished service as a foreign affairs advisor. Additionally, he wrote a dozen books on foreign affairs including The Far Eastern Question (1896), Serbia and the Serbs (1914), The End of the Ottoman Empire (1920) and The Egyptian Problem (1921). He is generally credited with popularizing "Middle East" in reference to the Arabian Peninsula with his book The Middle Eastern Question (1903). "Chirol" is a US citizen and graduate student studying Defense and Strategic Studies and government contractor. As with the historical Chirol, he has traveled to over two dozen countries and lived abroad for many years. Chirol speaks English and German fluently with basic knowledge of manyl of others.
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4 Responses to Germany Renews Afghanistan Mandate

  1. Fabius.Maximus.Cunctator says:
    10/18/2008 at 2:17 pm

    Chirol,

    If Germany is attacked by military force the armed forces can react without any “mandate” at all (Art. 87a II). Art. 87 also applies to the mil. reaction to an attack on a fellow NATO member.

    I must say I find it very strange that this primary function of Germany`s armed forces is so often overlooked, not just in this post but also in the MSM and in other blogs.

    In fairness, I should probably be overjoyed to note that there are out there who acknowledge the the (bitterly diveded) present govt can t just send troops somewhere.

  2. Fabius.Maximus.Cunctator says:
    10/18/2008 at 2:18 pm

    Oops, I left out “some people out there”.

  3. Chirol says:
    10/18/2008 at 3:12 pm

    Fabius: I’m well aware the German army can defend Germany without any mandate should Germany come under direct attack. Hence I noted ‘wars of aggression’ On top of this, this entire post is only about Afghanistan, hence only abroad. My first response to your comments wa simply “duh!”

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