Ukraine war shows need for Germany to rearm. But is it ready?
Roderich Kiesewetter says he could “smell” the decline in the German military. “You could feel it in the fingers,” says the former German battalion commander.
The German military’s “readiness” factor was at 90% when Mr. Kiesewetter launched his career nearly three decades ago. That deteriorated to somewhere between 20% and 60% by the time he retired from active service.
“That means if you need 150 aircraft, only 37 are ready to be deployed. Or you have a weapons system with 100 pieces that has only 20 working,” says Mr. Kiesewetter, who now serves in parliament as a member of the conservative Christian Democratic Union. “It is not acceptable. But I’m very optimistic that [now] we’re on the right path.”
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz clarified that “right path” shortly after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine,, or historical turning point, for Germany.
