The army’s reserve exists “only on paper,” says association president Patrick Sensburg. His recipe for increasing clout: mandatory military exercises every two years and better equipment.
The reservists association sees the reserve of the Bundeswehr in a desolate condition. “It’s a squad that still exists largely on paper,” said association president Patrick Sensburg Stuttgart newspaper and the Stuttgart News. What is needed is “a comprehensive reorientation” and better equipment.
The former CDU member of the Bundestag has been at the head of the association since 2019, which claims to have more than 115,000 members and represents both active and former soldiers.
In February, the FDP leadership brought a strengthened Bundeswehr reserve into play as an alternative to a return to conscription. Reservists could become a stronger component in a modern and powerful Bundeswehr, according to a draft resolution for consultations in the party presidium.
Since the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine, there has been intensive discussion about the operational capability of the Bundeswehr. Army Inspector Alfons Mais said at the beginning of the war that the Bundeswehr was “more or less blank” when it came to national defense. Now Sensburg is building on this criticism. A deterrent effect, especially against Russia, can only be achieved with a functioning reserve. “But the way the reserve is currently designed, it can’t do all that,” says the association president.