Germany Considers Recruiting Foreigners

Germany might allow foreign citizens to serve in its army, a senior lawmaker told Deutsche Welle on January 22.

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius raised the idea last week, as the Bundeswehr is struggling to find enough soldiers amid threats from Russia. The proposal has support from his Social Democratic Party, as well as the Free Democrats (fdp) and the opposition Christian Democratic Union.

A European army: fdp member Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, chair of the parliament’s defense committee, said soldiers for the German Army could initially come from other European Union nations, as well as from countries who are in negotiations to join the EU. She said lawmakers have to “think a little bolder and bigger and more European.”

We are already working toward the goal of having a European army in the long term. … [I]f you think in a European way, it can no longer matter what nationality a soldier has within this European framework.
—Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmerman

Preparing for war: Last month, Pistorius said Germany is considering bringing back conscription and emphasized that its army must be ready for war within five to eight years.

The push for a unified European army led by Germany is a trend the Trumpet and its forerunner magazine, the Plain Truth, have closely watched for decades. Opening the Bundeswehr to other European countries would be a major step to forming this army.

Learn more: Read our Trends article “Why the Trumpet Watches Europe’s Push Toward a Unified Military.”