Bundeswehr Considers Former East German Soldiers too Address Staff Shortages
BERLIN – Facing a critical shortage of personnel,the German Bundeswehr is exploring the possibility of utilizing former soldiers of the Nationale Volksarmee (NVA),the armed forces of East Germany,as reservists. The move, proposed by CDU politician Sepp Müller, would require amending a provision within the German reunification contract.
According to a report in Stern magazine, the Bundeswehr aims to have 200,000 rapidly deployable reservists, while the Bundeswehr Association advocates for a reserve force of up to one million. Currently, only 51,000 reservists are available, despite a pool of approximately 860,000 individuals who have previously served in the bundeswehr and retain their rank.
“It is time to use the soldiers of the NVA who voluntarily report to protect our freedom,” Müller stated. He proposes accelerated training programs tailored for former NVA personnel, acknowledging their prior conscript service. “We celebrate 35 years of the freedom of freedom. For a long time, our freedom was no longer as threatened as it was up to date,” Müller explained.
The discussion follows a similar call from Left Party politician Jan Bartsch, who suggested revisiting the regulation excluding former NVA soldiers, even considering their age.”Even if all former NVA soldiers are now over 50 years old, one should rethink weather their complete exclusion should be maintained,” Bartsch told the Süddeutsche Zeitung, pointing to potential roles in homeland security. Bartsch himself served in an NVA parachute hunter battalion.
The current restriction stems from the terms of German reunification.While approximately 18,000 NVA soldiers where integrated into the Bundeswehr post-reunification, the remaining 152,000+ were barred from reservist status.A change in regulations could potentially open reservist roles to tens of thousands of men now between the ages of 50 and 65, all of whom completed mandatory military service in the GDR.
