Status: 01.07.2021 02:03 a.m.
Defense Minister Kramp-Karrenbauer has in the daily topics made it clear that lessons for other missions must be drawn from the Bundeswehr’s mission in Afghanistan. She also pledged further support to Kabul after the troops withdrew.
After the last Bundeswehr soldiers returned from Afghanistan, Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer (CDU) drew a mixed balance of the longest German deployment abroad. She was happy “that all men and women came home healthy,” said Kramp-Karrenbauer in the daily topics.
The Bundeswehr had fulfilled its orders in Afghanistan. In the past 20 years, the country was “not a safe place for terrorists”. A whole generation had the chance to grow up under better conditions.
Discussion about corona vaccination for young people
Ingrid Bertram, WDR, daily topics 10:15 p.m., June 30, 2021
Lessons with a view to Mali
The minister described it as a “mistake that we gave the impression that we could quickly turn Afghanistan into a state based on the European model by means of nation-building.” This is one of the lessons “that I draw and that we must also observe, above all with a view to Mali”.
It has been shown that it is also important for other international missions such as the UN Minusma mission in Mali to define realistic political goals, said Kramp-Karrenbauer. The future of the mandate in West Africa depends on it. “I’ll stick with it, we can achieve something there, we shouldn’t leave this region to its own devices yet, but the goals we set ourselves must also be achievable.”
Kramp-Karrenbauer holds out the prospect of further support for Afghanistan
The minister also promised the Afghan government further support: “Even if we leave the country militarily, we must continue to stand by Afghanistan, for example by continuing to provide civilian support or by talking about it within NATO how we can continue to support the Afghan army, for example. ”
The Defense Minister promised the local staff in Afghanistan, who had been helping the German soldiers since 2013, with their departure. She is currently fighting to allow a group of around 350 local helpers and their families to leave the country as part of a simplified procedure. However, Kramp-Karrenbauer did not name a specific period.