Anti-Russian Propaganda Reaches German Schools – German Media

Army and military equipment are seemingly becoming a natural part of leisure and family activities in Germany. The last major “military” event took place on June 13 in 15 various cities in commemoration of the 60th anniversary of the Bundeswehr, WSWS reported.

According to the website, staged combat and armor demonstrations, simulations of helicopter operations and personal conversations with soldiers coupled with entertainment facilities for children and families are a central component of a new strategy in foreign policy, which was announced by the federal government at the beginning of 2014.

German President Joachim Gauck had called for a stronger role of the army in the German society already in 2012.

"Generals, officers, Bundeswehr soldiers – come back to the middle of our society!" he appealed to his audience.

The Bundeswehr anniversary was not the only part of an intensive and comprehensive military strategy to recruit young people for the armed service. The strategy is aimed at militarizing the whole society and recalls the darkest times of German history, with the population being re-accustomed to violence and preparing for new wars, WSWS wrote.

The problem here is that the German army faces an overwhelming opposition. Given the historical crimes of German imperialism in the two World Wars, anti-war sentiment in the country is very strong.

To attract more people to its military ranks, the government has been investing ever-increasing sums of money into recruitment activities since 2011. While in 2009 the allocated financing was "only" €3.8 million, the planned spending in 2015 is nearly ten times more and amounts to €35.5 million.

The central task of the new strategy is to make the German army "one of the most attractive employers" in the country. It includes a comprehensive recruitment policy at schools, job fairs or on the Internet.

Schools are often attended by officers who present themselves as objective experts on foreign and security policy, but mainly talk about missions abroad and the dangers of international terrorism. They try not only to convince pupils of the necessity of military operations worldwide, but also promote their own propaganda materials.

Anti-Russian propaganda is one of the most common ones. The German youth is being convinced that Russia poses a serious threat to international security, which the EU and NATO have to tackle immediately.