Bundeswehr โฃPrepares for Up toโ 1,000 Wounded Daily in Potential NATO-Russia Conflict
BERLINโ – โTheโ Germanโ Armed Forces (Bundeswehr) are preparing toโ handle up to 1,000 wounded soldiersโ daily โin the event of a warโค between NATO and Russia,according to General Service doctor Ralf Hoffmann. The preparationsโฃ come amid warnings from military allianceโค and Western intelligence agencies suggesting a potential Russian attack โขcapability by 2029, claims Moscow denies.
Hoffmann stated โin a โคrecent interview wiht Reuters,โค “A thousand a day is โคsuch a magnitude that we โare talking about realistically.” The plan involves initial first aid at โthe front linesโ followed by transport to โGermany forโข further treatment, โprimarily utilizing civilianโ hospitals.
Approximatelyโ 15,000 hospital beds would be required to accommodate this influx ofโฃ casualties, representing a small โขfraction of Germany’sโข totalโข capacity of up to 440,000โ beds. The โคBundeswehr is currently working to rebuild its transport capabilities, exploring options including hospital trains, buses, and expanded air evacuation. “We cannot predict exactly, you can fly, you can go over the sea,” Hoffmannโ explained. “And that is why my goal is thatโ for โall โways of transport, we areโฆtoโ get hospital trains and buses again and expand the evacuation โฃfrom the air.”
Lessons from the ongoing warโ inโข Ukraine, the largest Europeanโ conflict as World War II, are informingโ these โpreparations. Hoffmann noted a shift in the nature of warfare, with explosion and combustionโ wounds โคfrom drones now predominating over traditional gunshot injuries.He highlighted the challenges of evacuating wounded soldiers from the front lines inโค Ukraine, where a “death zone” of approximately ten kilometers on either sideโค of the front line hinders rapid removal due toโฃ pervasive drone activity.
To bolsterโ resilience,โ military hospitals are reactivating bunkers, acknowledging the possibility of attacks on healthcare facilities. The โขBundeswehr’sโข medical service, currently comprised โof 15,000 personnel, is also slated for expansion. โ”We are good quality, we are not yet quantitative,” Hoffmann said.