Thomas A. Haag
November 23, 2006

In the mid-90's, there existed an innocuous cliché relating to the German penchant for grabbing the choicest spots next to vacation resort pools. Particularly British tourists complained that their German counterparts would rise at the crack of dawn and rush to stake out the most desirable poolside real estate. Unfortunately, this humorous anecdote for German determination bears a troubling resemblance to Germany's current deployment of troops in Afghanistan.

Whereas German tourists hustled to maximize their exposure to the sun at the expense of their British colleagues, early bird German policy tacticians dashed to grab the best pool chairs by ensuring that the Bundeswehr was given responsibility over the relatively calm northern portion of the country. U.S., Dutch, Canadian and British forces were left to lie on the harsher ground of the more hostile southern portion of the country. However, Germany assured its NATO allies that it would come to their assistance on a temporary basis if needed.

Since this division of labor was created, however, the security situation in the south has fallen off precipitously. The Taliban and their sympathizers have regrouped and have been mounting increasingly aggressive attacks against civilians and NATO troops. U.S., Dutch, Canadian and British NATO forces responded with combat operations but have realized that without reinforcements, the situation will get out of hand. British Commanding General Richards has repeatedly made desperate, yet unanswered calls for more NATO and in particular German troops to fight the increasingly emboldened Taliban fighters. The General indicated that the next few weeks will be critical to the future of a peaceful Afghanistan. Just this past week, British Prime Minister Tony Blair stated that the fate of global security rested directly on the West's ability to fight off the Taliban and on delivery of peace and stability to Afghanistan as a whole.

Ignoring the plight of their allies, the German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Defense Minister Franz Josef Jung have gone on record insisting that the Bundeswehr's 2,800 soldiers would stay in the calm north as originally agreed regardless of the change in circumstances. Notwithstanding the fact that its mandate would temporarily allow it to send more, Germany's token contribution to NATO's effort in the south has amounted to a few medical transport flights and two dozen communications soldiers.

Jung has argued that combat missions would not be compatible with the Bundeswehr's "networked," e.g., school-building and well-digging, approach to fighting terror. Social Democrat parliamentary leader and former German Defense Minister Peter Struck even had the audacity to suggest that the northern region of the country had been pacified as a result of the German military's development programs - wholly ignoring the fact that the Bundeswehr's good deeds have only been possible because the Taliban has far fewer sympathizers in the territory of the former anti-Taliban Northern Alliance. Specious arguments have also been made that sending German troops to the south would somehow endanger the good work that had been completed in the north - as if Germany was down to its last man.

The distribution of responsibilities in Afghanistan will be at the top of the agenda at next week's NATO summit in Riga. German politicians will get an earful for their dogged determination not to allow Bundeswehr troops to come to the aid of their comrades in the south. German policy makers will try to change the subject by arguing for a new overarching strategy for the country insisting that military victory cannot be achieved without civilian reconstruction. It should be clear to all, however, that the German "networked" approach is not possible in the south without first rooting out the marauding Taliban fighters. In the end, inward-looking German politicians ever mindful of the next domestic opinion poll will remain content to let others do the dirty work and the bleeding.

Decades of paternalistic backroom checkbook diplomacy practiced by celebrated leaders such as Hans-Dietrich Genscher and the deep-pocket security umbrella provided by the United States, have resulted in a German populace that largely believes it has no real stake in any conflicts abroad. Even with the knowledge of the Hamburg cell, Djerba and July's failed train bombings in Koblenz and Dortmund, the idea that Germany could have any enemies abroad remains unfathomable for many. Far-left German politicians such as Oskar Lafontaine openly foster this hopeful illusion by publicly stating that any German military involvement abroad should be minimized to avoid attracting terrorist attacks. The result is that German policy makers walk a tightrope between the demands of its allies for burden sharing and a public that is deeply skeptical of intervention of any kind. Rather than educate their constituents about Germany's true role in Afghanistan and its vital role in the global war on terror, German politicians consistently sugarcoat external threats and take the untenable policy positions now seen in Afghanistan.

In view of its bellicose history, the international community has until recently largely indulged Germany the luxury of its pacifist self-image in justifying its reluctance to take on military responsibilities. However, the specific demands on Germany from NATO in Afghanistan no longer constitute suggestions to increase its defense spending, prodding to speed along military transformation or gentle nudging to take on more peace-keeping missions. They now amount to allied cries for military combat assistance which, if withheld, could lead to exacerbated allied casualties, the reversion of Afghanistan to a failed state terrorist incubator and the ultimate dissolution of NATO itself. NATO needs German troops in southern Afghanistan and Germany's politicians should have the moral backbone to send them and explain to its citizens why. Otherwise, the amusing anecdote about German over-eagerness for prime pool chairs risks becoming a sad metaphor for an inconsiderate and self-absorbed German foreign policy.

Thomas A. Haag is a German reserve officer and now an attorney practicing in Washington, D.C.