Mr. Münkler, did you actually serve? No. Like many in my generation, I did community service in a clinic in the Ahr Valley.
Do you still remember why you refused military service? I no longer remember the reasons and arguments from back then. You wrote down what you thought would be conducive to recognition.
But did it correspond to your attitude? Sure. I had a certain distance from some family traditions, including World War relics in my grandparents’ apartments. Medals, for example. Above all, back in 1970, I had great political sympathy for the détente policy that had begun. There were signs of understanding between the Soviet Union and NATO.
The Chancellor said he would no longer refuse military service today. Same for me.
Why? The situation is now completely different. The Soviet Union, a saturated protector of vested interests, no longer exists. In their place, Russia has emerged as a deeply revisionist power with a fundamental interest in shifting borders in Europe. And the world has become much more restless. Our world order is currently falling apart.
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