German army chief ‘fed up’ with neglect of country’s military

The chief of the German army vented his frustration over what he sees as the long-running neglect of military readiness in his country in an unusual public rant a few hours after Russia invaded Ukraine, adding that the army was in bad shape.

Russian forces invaded Ukraine by land, air and sea on Thursday, confirming the worst fears of the West with the biggest attack by one state against another in Europe since World War Two. read more

“In my 41th year of peace-time service, I would not have thought that I would have to experience a war,” Lieutenant General Alfons Mais said on LinkedIn on Thursday.

“And the Bundeswehr, the army which I have the honour to command, is standing there more or less empty-handed. The options we can offer the government in support of the alliance are extremely limited.”

Commentators on LinkedIn praised Mais for his “brutally honest” words, many of them backing his veiled criticism of consecutive German governments that have been blamed for not fulfilling NATO’s targets for military spending.

Germany in January offered to supply 5,000 military helmets to Ukraine to help defend against possible invasion - an offer Kyiv mayor and former world champion boxer Vitali Klitschko dismissed as “a joke”.

“We have all seen it coming but were not able to get through with our arguments to draw the consequences after (Russia’s) annexation of Crimea. This does not feel good. I am fed up with it,” Mais said in his post.