The chairman of the German Armed Forces Association, André Wüstner, has warned Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht (SPD), who has been criticized, to make quick and consistent decisions. “We don’t have time,” said Wüstner on Monday evening in the ARD “Tagesthemen”.
The challenges for the Bundeswehr in the areas of personnel, material and infrastructure are enormous, and speed is “the order of the day”. He added: “The turning point must finally be felt.”
Wüstner: Defense policy was “catastrophic”
Wüstner called the defense policy of the past years in the era of the grand coalition and before “catastrophic”. Although this was a burden for Lambrecht, she had started with a team that was not experienced in security policy. He is surprised that politicians from the ranks of the traffic light coalition would now openly criticize, for example in connection with the risks in the billion-euro project of the new F-35 fighter jets to be procured. Wüstner’s assessment: “I think there are communication deficits.”
Although the first measures had been taken with the “Bundeswehr Procurement Acceleration Act”, the colonel emphasized that Lambrecht was still required to prove its ability to find solutions.
The Bundeswehr Association represents the interests of soldiers and civilian employees of the Bundeswehr.
